New Delhi, May 2: Delhi isn’t the most polluted city anymore but there’s little reason to cheer. UP’s industrial city Kanpur has pipped the national capital and of the 15 most polluted cities in the world, 14 happen to be in India, reveals WHO global pollution database released early on Wednesday. The data is up to 2016. The pollution, measured in terms of particulate matter (PM2.5), was as high as 173 micrograms per cubic metre in Kanpur followed by Faridabad at 172. The other Indian cities on the list are Varanasi, Gaya, Patna, Delhi, Lucknow, Agra, Muzaffarpur, Srinagar, Gurgaon, Jaipur, Patiala and Jodhpur. In terms of PM10 levels, 13 Indian cities figured among the 20 most-polluted cities of the world in 2016. Also Read - Delhi Containment Zones: Over 600 Hotspots Identified Within 10 Days, Total Number Jumps to 1937 | Check Zone-wise Full List Here

The reason so many Indian cities have figured on the list for 2016 is the improvement in the country’s pollution monitoring system. “With improved air quality monitoring, we are beginning to understand the depth and spread of the air pollution problem in India. While Delhi is at the crossroads and is expected to bend the curve post 2016, other pollution hot spots are proliferating across the country,” said Anumita Roy Chowdhury, executive director, Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), was quoted by The Times of India. Also Read - 'WHO Very Much Part of Wuhan COVID-19 Cover-Up Process': Chinese Virologist Makes Another Sensational Claim

The WHO has said that the Southeast Asia Region; India is a part of it, accounts for 35 percent premature deaths caused globally by pollution every year. This translates into 2.4 million deaths per year. Of the 3.8 million deaths caused by household air pollution globally, the region accounts for 1.5 million or 40 percent deaths, PTI quotes the report. Over 90 percent of pollution-related deaths were reported from low- and middle-income countries (like India), mostly in Asia and Africa, followed by those of the Eastern Mediterranean region, Europe and then the Americas. Also Read - Delhi High Court Stays AAP Govt Order to Reserve 80% ICU beds in Private Hospitals for COVID Patients

PM 2.5 measures pollutants like nitrate, sulphate and black carbon which pose the greatest risk to health. According to WHO, fine air particle pollution penetrates into the lungs and cardiovascular system, causing diseases like stroke, heart ailment, lung cancer and respiratory infections. It points out that 9 out of 10 people breathe highly polluted air.

WHO’s database measured the levels of fine particulate matter from more than 4,300 cities in 108 countries. The effects of household pollution and outside air pollution needs to be tackled early, said WHO Southeast Asia regional director Poonam Khetrapal Singh. “Air pollution needs to be brought under control with urgent and effective action. Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are the leading cause of deaths globally and in the region, and air pollution contributes significantly to NCDs such as cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease and lung cancer. Cleaning up the air we breathe will help prevent NCDs, particularly among women and vulnerable groups such as children, those already ill and the elderly.”

Major sources of air pollution from particulate matter are poor use of energy by households, industry, agriculture and transport sectors, coal-fired power plants, burning of waste in the open and deforestation. “Air pollution does not recognise borders. Improving air quality demands sustained and coordinated government action at all levels,” the WHO said.