According to the ‘Environmental Risk Outlook 2021’ released by Verisk Maplecroft, India has 43 of the World’s 100 most environmentally riskiest cities. Jakarta in Indonesia was ranked as the most riskiest city in the world, followed by Delhi & Chennai (Tamil Nadu).
- 99 of the World’s 100 riskiest cities are in Asia (43 in India and 37 in China).
- Lima, Peru is the only non-Asian city to be listed in the World’s 100 Riskiest cities.
- Glasgow, Scotland was ranked as the safety city in the report.
World’s 3 most environmentally riskiest cities
| 1 | Jakarta, Indonesia |
| 2 | Delhi, India |
| 3 | Chennai, Tamil Nadu |
India’s Scenario
- India has 13 of the World’s 20 highest risk locations.
- Some other indian cities in the list are – Agra, Uttar Pradesh (6th); Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh (10th); Jaipur, Rajasthan (22nd); Lucknow, UP (24th), Bengaluru, Karnataka (25th) & Mumbai, Maharashtra (27th).
- According to the report, the main threat to the health of India’s urban population is Air pollution.
- India’s poor air quality is largely to blame for its high level of environmental risk. As per 2020 Lancet study, air pollution contributed to 1.7 million premature deaths in India in 2019, and scientists say air pollution is driving up the death toll in the devastating COVID-19 outbreak unfolding in India this spring.
Asia-Highest Vulnerable Countries:
Asia has the World’s most densely populated which puts pressure on water sources and compounds pollution from the widespread burning of coal and biomass fuels–but also has a large number of so-called “natural hazards” built into its geography.
Environmental Risk Outlook 2021
- The report ranks the world’s 576 largest urban centres based on their exposure to a range of environmental and climate-related threats.
- The report is based on 9 risk indices which evaluate the liveability, investment potential and operational risk landscape of cities with a population over 1 million.
- The 2021 report is the 1st instalment in the Cities@Risk series of Verisk Maplecroft.
Highlights
i.Around the world, 1.5 billion people live in 414 cities that are at high risk from pollution, water shortages, extreme heat, and the impacts of climate change.
- The greatest risk facing Asian cities are air pollution and natural disasters.
- It should be noted that China is the World’s largest emitter of greenhouse gases, while India is the 3rd largest emitter of greenhouse gases.
ii.Outside Asia, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) has the largest proportion of cities categorised as high risk.
Recent Related News:
March 17, 2021, According to the ‘2020 World Air Quality Report’ released by IQAir, India was the 3rd Most Polluted Country in the World in 2020 after Bangladesh & Pakistan. Delhi was the most polluted Capital City for the 3rd consecutive time; it was followed by Dhaka (Bangladesh) & Ulaanbaatar (Mongolia).
About Verisk Maplecroft
President – Matt Moshiri
Headquarters – Bath, United Kingdom
