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The Hindu : Death in the air: tackling air pollution
As an environmental scourge that killed an estimated 1.24 million people in India in 2017, air pollution should be among the highest policy priorities. But the Centre and State governments have tended to treat it as a chronic malaise that defies a solution. The deadly results of official apathy are outlined in the Global Burden of Disease 2017 report on the impact of air pollution on deaths, disease burden, and life expectancy across the states of India, published by The Lancet. Millions of people are forced to lead morbid lives or face premature death due to bad air quality. India’s national standard for ambient fine particulate matter, or PM2.5, is notoriously lax at 40 micrograms per cubic metre, but even so, 77% of the population was exposed to higher levels on average. No State met the annual average exposure norm for PM2.5 of 10 micrograms per cubic metre set by the World Health Organisation. If the country paid greater attention to ambient air quality and household air pollution, the researchers say, people living in the worst-affected States of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan and Jharkhand could add more than 1.7 years to their life expectancy. Similar gains would accrue nationwide, but it is regions with low social development, reflected partly in reliance on solid fuels for cooking, and those with ambient air pollution caused by stubble-burning, construction dust and unbridled motorisation such as Delhi that would benefit the most.
Sustainable solutions must be found for stubble-burning and the use of solid fuels in households, the two major sources of pollution, and State governments must be made accountable for this. The Centre should work with Punjab and Haryana to ensure that the machinery already distributed to farmers and cooperatives to handle agricultural waste is in place and working. A mechanism for rapid collection of farm residues has to be instituted. In fact, new approaches to recovering value from biomass could be the way forward. The proposal from a furniture-maker to convert straw into useful products will be keenly watched for its outcomes. A shift away from solid fuels to LPG in millions of low-income homes has provided health benefits, The Lancet study says, underscoring the value of clean alternatives. The potential of domestic biogas units, solar cookers and improved biomass cookstoves has to be explored, since they impose no additional expenditure on rural and less affluent households. Such measures should, of course, be complemented by strong control over urban sources of pollution. India’s commitments under the Paris Agreement on climate change require a sharp reduction in particulates from fossil fuel. Fuels may be relatively cleaner today and vehicles better engineered to cut emissions, but traffic densities in cities have led to a rise in pollution. Real-time measurement of pollution is also lacking. There are not enough ground-level monitoring stations for PM2.5, and studies primarily use satellite imagery and modelling to project health impacts. Rapid progress on clean air now depends on citizens making it a front-line political issue.
1. Scourge (noun) : विपत्ति
Meaning – a source of persistent trouble, pain, suffering
Synonym – menace, pestilence
Antonym – blessing, happiness
Usage
Graffiti is the scourge of building owners everywhere
Air pollution has become a scourge which needs to be resolved
2. Malaise (noun) : अस्वस्थता
Meaning – a general feeling of discomfort, illness, or unease whose exact cause is difficult to identify.
Synonym – despair, doldrums
Antonym – cheer, comfort
Usage
He was afflicted by the modern malaise of instability and a fear of life.
There is a restlessness, a malaise, among the workers.
3. Apathy (noun) : उदासीनता
Meaning – lack of interest, enthusiasm, or concern.
Synonym – indifference, dispassion
Antonym – interest, concern
Usage
His apathy just made her even more frustrated.
Voter apathy is especially high among young people.
4. Morbid (adjective) : रोगों की संख्या
Meaning – the condition of being diseased.
Synonym – gloomy, baleful
Antonym – healthy, cheerful
Usage
For inflammatory bowel disease the morbid risk varies with age
5. Notoriously (adverb) : कुख्यात
Meaning – famous for a bad thing
Synonym – tarnished, infamous
Antonym – famous, popular
Usage
The cow vigilante groups have been notoriously fickle in the past
He is notoriously indiscreet about his private life
6. Accrue (verb) : उपाजित होना
Meaning – accumulation of something
Synonym – amass, collect
Antonym – disperse,distribute
Usage
Ability to think will accrue to you from good habits of study.
Interest will accrue if you keep your money in a savings account.
7. Unbridled (adjective) : निरंकुश
Meaning – uncontrolled; unconstrained
Synonym – rampant, unchecked
Antonym – controlled, subdued
Usage
His annoyance had unbridled his tongue.
Unbridled freedom leads to extravagance and waste of money
8. Rapid (adjective) : तीव्र
Meaning – happening in a short time or at a great rate.
Synonym – accelerated, brisk
Antonym – delayed, sluggish
Usage
There has been a rapid acceleration in the growth of industry.
The rapid expansion of cities can cause social and economic problems.
9. Underscoring (verb) : बल देना
Meaning – to give importance, emphasise
Synonym – highlight, indicate
Antonym – disapprove, deny
Usage
In addition, the extra mark gives credibility to your message while underscoring your point.
10. Affluent (adjective) : धनी
Meaning – (especially of a group or area) having a great deal of money; wealthy.
Synonym – prosperous, rich
Antonym – destitute, poor
Usage
Cheap cars has led to the creation of a new, affluent middle class.
Affluent dwellers are major contributors to pollution with their lavish lifestyle
