India In Pack Of Worst-Five On Environmental Performance Ranking

All the efforts made by the country to guard the environment notwithstanding, India seem to be getting worse year after year. According to a biennial report by Yale and Columbia universities, which is prepared in collaboration with the World Economic Forum, India is among the bottom five countries on the Environmental Performance Index 2018. In a list of 180 countries, India is positioned at the 177th spot. This is a fall of 36 points from its previous ranking of 141 in 2016.

Switzerland tops the list while France, Denmark, Malta and Sweden are ranked second, third, fourth and fifth, respectively.

India's poor performance in the environment health policy and deaths due to air pollution categories are the reason behind the fall in ranking. According to the report, which ranked countries' performance on 24 indicators across 10 categories, air quality is the leading environmental threat to public health, and India has failed to do much to improve quality.

"Despite government action, pollution from solid fuels, coal and crop residue burning, and emissions from motor vehicles continue to severely degrade the air quality for millions of Indians," the report said.

Here are certain other worrisome facts.

India is at the bottom of the list in the environmental health category. It ranks 178 in air quality.

In India, deaths attributed to ultra-fine particulate matter 2.5 (PM2.5) pollutants have risen over the past decade. About 1,640,113 people meet their end annually due to this.

While China is ranked 120 in the list, neighbouring Bangladesh is placed at the 179th spot.

"China and India reflecting the strain population pressures and rapid economic growth impose on the environment," the report said.

"Pollution is particularly severe in places such as India and China, where greater levels of economic development contribute to higher pollution levels… As countries develop, increased population growth in large cities, as well as increased industrial production and automotive transportation, continue to expose people to high levels of air pollution," it added.

With inputs from Housing News