Pollution spike to hit Hyderabad most

Studies show that Hyderabad would record most deaths among other cities with a similar quantum of increase in pollution. However, researchers say that this is also an encouraging sign signaling that the city has not reached the threshold of pollution.

Research carried out by experts at IIM Ahmedabad has shown that a 10 microgram increase of 10 micron particulate matter (PM10) would result in an increase in mortality rate by 0.85 per cent in Hyderabad, 0.22 per cent in Bengaluru, 0.20 per cent in Mumbai and 0.16 per cent in Ahmedabad.

Researchers say that as the pollution in Hyderabad increases, the risk and associated mortality rate will increase at a faster pace than in other cities. The study on Atmosphere Environ-ment was published by Dr Amit Garg, Dr Dhiman Bhadra and Dr Hem Dholakia.

Experts found that the mortality rate for a smaller city like Shimla was even higher than that in Hyderabad. “As the levels of pollution increase, the associated mortality rate also increases with higher pollution causing higher number of deaths. But it is not equal among all cities,” Dr Hem Dholakia, Research Fellow at the Public Systems Group, IIM-A, explained.

But this also means that the level of pollution is considerably lower in Hyderabad than Bengaluru or Mumbai and chances of cleaning it up are better. “When pollution levels reach a certain threshold level, any further increase doesn’t result in an increase in mortality rate. It just becomes a constant from there on. And when pollution levels are lower, a small increase results in higher mortality rate. It is a good sign for Hyderabad,” Dr Dholakia explained.

This means while other cities like Bengaluru and Mumbai might have reached their thresholds, Hyderabad still has a chance to clean up.