Air pollution claims around 1m lives each year in Bangladesh, 4 South Asian countries: WB
The Indo-Gangetic Plains and Himalayan Foothills (IGP-HF) region of South Asia records the highest levels of air pollution globally. Air pollution across the IGP-HF has reached critical levels, threatening health and productivity for nearly one billion people.
The IGP-HF region encompasses Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, and Pakistan.
Around one million people die prematurely each year from exposure to polluted air. Cardiovascular and respiratory diseases have become leading causes of illness and death, average life expectancy in the IGP-HF region is shortened by more than three years.
These were revealed in World Bank report titled ‘A breath of change: Solutions for cleaner air in the Indo-Ganetic plains and Himalayan foothills.” The World Bank unveiled the report on Thursday.
The report said the associated economic damage is estimated at about 10 per cent of regional GDP annually, driven by lost labor productivity, higher healthcare costs, and reduced human capital.
The report says although national circumstances vary, the main causes of pollution are generally similar. The causes in descending order are: Use of solid fuels in households; reliance on fossil fuels and biomass in industrial production and power generation, without adequate pollution control technology; use of highly polluting internal combustion engines, especially heavy-duty vehicles; crop residue burning, and inefficient management of fertilizer and manure; and open burning of municipal waste, inadequate management of construction and demolition debris, and road dust.
The report also highlighted solutions to curb the pollution.
“The Solutions Book highlights a portfolio of interventions in each of the five key pollution emitting sectors: scaling up access to clean cooking fuels and appliances; electrifying and modernising industrial boilers, furnaces, kilns and thermal power plants; accelerating the transition to electric and efficient vehicles alongside improvements in fuel quality, and strengthening of non-motorized transport in the transport sector; promoting sustainable agricultural crop residue, livestock manure and fertilizer management; and improving waste collection, segregation, and recycling.
In parallel, protective sectors, particularly health and education, play a vital role in helping people cope while air quality remains poor. These sectors safeguard human capital through interventions such as public-health advisories, school-based awareness campaigns, improved classroom ventilation and filtration, provision of protective masks, and accessible health services for those affected by air pollution-related illnesses. Strengthening these systems ensures that populations, especially children and other vulnerable groups, are better protected from ongoing exposure, even as structural emission reductions take effect over time.”
The report stressed four I’s for solutions to the pollution problem in these region. These are: Information-- Reliable, open, and actionable data are the foundation of effective air quality management; Incentives-- well-designed fiscal and regulatory incentives shape how households, firms, and farms behave; Institutions-- strong, coordinated institutions and governance structures are essential for sustained progress at both national and regional levels. Inter-ministerial committees or environmental agencies play a key role in clarifying mandates and streamlining enforcement across sectors and jurisdictions; and Infrastructure-- transforming the region’s energy, transport, and industrial base requires financing and physical infrastructure. Dedicated credit lines, performance-based grants, and blended-finance instruments can de-risk private investment in clean technologies.
World Bank senior environmental economist Martin Heger said this report shows that solutions are well within reach and provides an effective framework for policymakers and decision-makers to implement coordinated, practical, and evidence-based actions at scale.