India is a large Southeast Asian Country hosting the second largest population of any in the world, behind China. The culturally and geographically diverse region is currently home to an expanding middle class following decades of intense poverty in many regions. India’s quickly growing economy relies on the export of agricultural products, textiles, telecommunications pharmaceuticals, mining, and petroleum among other goods and services.
Along with India’s economic boom have come major pollution issues, especially air pollution. Here, we’ll cover these areas of pollution in India:
Summary of Pollution in India
According to Yale’s Environmental Performance Index report of 2020 (EPI), India received an overall environmental performance score of 27.6 of 100 total points, ranking at just 168 of 180 countries.
Download Full Report: India EPI Country Profile
As the scorecard shows, India ranked well below world averages for almost all criteria evaluated. India also tended to rank below regional averages. India showed low scores across the board in land and water pollution but scored particularly low in air quality.
Air Pollution in India
Air pollution in India is notoriously poor. The EPI found India received a score of 13.4 of 100 and ranked at 179 of 180 countries, meaning only one country (Pakistan) has worse air quality.
The air in India is consistently unsafe to breathe and is harmful to all residents on a daily basis. The country deals with particulate matter pollution in particular, meaning that India’s residents have health issues mainly due to inhalation of fine particulates, mostly from fuel-burning.
Air quality is this bad in India due to:
- Industrial emissions
- Crop burning
- Vehicle emissions
- Burning wood
Household wood-burning alone was estimated to have caused around 900,000 premature deaths in 2010 due to the release of lethal particulate matter. India’s pollution becomes worse due to winter weather systems daily and is much worse in the Northern part of the county compared to the south because of the heavy industrial areas in the North.
Learn more about air quality standards and measurement.
Water Pollution in India
While the state water pollution is arguably better than air pollution in India, it’s not by much. The sheer amount of industry and agriculture, and densely populated areas combined with a lack of wastewater infrastructure mean that around 70% of India’s freshwater is severely polluted.
The main causes of water pollution in India are:
- Garbage dumping into surface water
- Residential sewage dumping into surface water
- Agricultural and industrial runoff
- Lack of wastewater treatment infrastructure
Learn more about water pollution and how it’s measured.
India’s Water Quality
India struggles to provide water to all of its 1.3 billion residents. The water that is there is almost always unsafe to drink, and its polluted water causes 20% of all diseases each year in the country.
Drinking Water
- Rank: 141/180
- EPI Score: 18/100
Wastewater Treatment
- Rank: 94/180
- EPI Score: 2.2/100
Both India’s surface water and its groundwater are contaminated because wastewater treatment is almost nonexistent in the country, meaning dangerous water is harming people and ecosystems.
Land Pollution in India
India’s land–its soil and ecosystems–have suffered as a result of increasing industry and urbanization. As the country grows, it continues to destroy healthy ecosystems and replace them with farms or factories.
Land pollution in India is mostly caused by:
- Deforestation
- Agriculture
- Mining
- Garbage dumping
- Urbanization
The soil in India is particularly polluted as a result of many of these activities which cause a build-up of fertilizers, pesticides, and other harmful chemicals in the soil, making it unable to support a healthy ecosystem.
Solid Waste Management
- Ranking: 103/180
- EPI Score: 16.1/100
Ecosystem Services
- Ranking: 93/180
- EPI Score: 33.8/100
The very low solid waste management score given to India by the EPI indicates that the country does not collect or treat most household nor commercial waste in a way that prevents environmental risks. In other words, much of the garbage produced in India is dumped in improper places and harms the soil and, in turn, local ecosystems.
Key Takeaways
Here’s the big picture of pollution in India:
- Overall EPI Ranking: 168/180
- Air Pollution: Very intense air pollution that is harmful to the health of Indian citizens.
- Air Pollution Rank: 179/180
- Water Pollution: Many Indians do not have access to water, and water that is accessible is dangerous to drink due to improper wastewater management.
- Drinking Water Rank: 141/180
- Wastewater Management Rank: 94/180
- Land Pollution: Most solid waste is not treated safely in landfills, and the country has experienced major habitat loss and soil pollution due to the expansion of industry, agriculture, and urban areas.
- Solid waste management rank: 103/180
- Ecosystem Services rank: 93/180