Pollution costs India nearly as much as govt health expenditure: Study

Air pollution kills more men than women, while it's the other way round for water pollution

Traditional pollution costs India losses equivalent to around 1 per cent of its gross domestic product, according to a study released on Tuesday. This is nearly equal to what the government spends on public healthcare.

The figures are calculated as the output lost when a person dies prematurely because of health complications arising out of pollution. The total figure has fallen from around 3.2 per cent of GDP in 2000 to around 1 per cent of GDP in 2019, according to the study entitled ‘Pollution and health: a progress update (The Lancet Planetary Health).’

State and central governments spent between 1.1 per