Air pollution across the Indo-Gangetic Plains and Himalayan Foothills (IGP-HF) poses a severe development challenge in South Asia, affecting nearly one billion people. The region experiences around one million premature deaths annually due to unhealthy air, with economic losses estimated at nearly 10 percent of regional GDP each year.
The World Bank’s report, A Breath of Change: Solutions for Cleaner Air in the Indo-Gangetic Plains and Himalayan Foothills, identifies practical actions that could significantly reduce pollution, improve public health, and boost economic growth if implemented across multiple sectors and jurisdictions. The report emphasizes that effective solutions are feasible and scalable, providing a roadmap for policymakers, enterprises, and households.
Air pollution in the IGP-HF, which includes parts of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, and Pakistan, originates from five major sources: households burning solid fuels for cooking and heating, inefficient industrial use of fossil fuels and biomass, motor vehicles with poor fuel efficiency, crop residue burning and inadequate fertilizer and manure management, and the burning of household and industrial waste.
The report recommends solutions such as electric cooking, electrification and modernization of industrial boilers and kilns, non-motorized and electric transport, improved crop residue and livestock waste management, and better waste segregation, recycling, and disposal. These measures target the root causes of pollution while being practical for broad adoption.
Solutions are structured around three core areas: abatement measures to reduce emissions at the source, protection measures to safeguard health and education systems for vulnerable populations during the transition, and strong institutions supported by regulatory frameworks, market incentives, and regional coordination to ensure sustained progress.
The report also highlights the “Four I’s” to operationalize clean-air solutions: Information to guide planning and accountability, Incentives to encourage investment in clean technologies, Institutions to coordinate and enforce actions, and Infrastructure to support clean energy, transport, waste management, and efficient industrial operations.
According to World Bank experts, achieving cleaner air in South Asia will require sustained collaboration, adequate financing, and effective implementation at local, national, and regional levels. Coordinated action can save millions of lives, reduce economic losses, and deliver lasting improvements in air quality for nearly one billion people.
