Alarmed by the growing negative impact of increasing air pollution on public health, eight of the country’s top doctors specialising in various disciplines have come together to form the Air Pollution Institute of Research (AIR) council.

The AIR council is made up of four city-based specialists: paediatrician Dr. Bakul Parekh, chest physician Dr. Ashok Mahashur, interventional cardiologist Dr. Akshay Mehta and gynaecologist Dr. Rishma Pai. The other four are Chennai-based paediatric pulmonologist De. Vijaya Sekaran, paediatrician Dr. Pramod Jog and interventional cardiologist Dr. Shirish Hiremath, both from Pune, and Dr. Hema Diwakar from Bangalore.

The council will endeavour to get to the root of the menace, collect data to link air pollutants to diseases, and eventually get the public and government to bring change gradually. The doctors will be coming out with a white paper on the issue soon.

Dr. Mahashur, who has expertise in treating allergies and respiratory illnesses, said the council is in a nascent stage. “Each of us will collect first-hand data to support the fact that air pollution does have a devastating impact on health. The idea is to first build a case with medical evidence. The next step is to create awareness and work out preventive measures with government and public participation.”

Pollutants present in the air we breathe include particulate matter, carbon monoxide, ozone, nitrogen dioxide and sulphur dioxide. The World Health Organisation (WHO) terms air pollution as a major environmental risk to health that increases the burden of ailments such as strokes, heart disease, lung cancer, chronic and acute respiratory diseases including asthma.

In a recent report, WHO had classified New Delhi as India’s most polluted city. An analysis by the Central Pollution Control Board averred with the WHO report, and said Mumbai ranked with Delhi as cities with the worst air quality among the 10 cities surveyed.

The AIR council aims to restrict vehicle numbers, ensure free flow of traffic, promote usage of public transport, avoid having schools near industrial areas or dumping grounds, among other objectives. Dr. Mahashur said, “Studies have shown that pollutant levels shoot up when traffic is stagnated. Changes in issues like these can be brought when we have public and government participation.” He said during the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, roads leading to the venues were closed for private vehicles, leading to a drastic decline in ozone pollution. At the time, medical experts observed a 42% decline in acute asthma cases.

Dr. Pai said according to experts, air pollution impacts both newborn and foetuses. “We lack our own data to prove such startling theories. Studies will now be done.” Dr. Parekh added, “The relation between air pollution and health risk is mostly based on circumstantial evidence. Respiratory allergies and worst episodes of asthma are often triggered by high pollutant levels, but we need more specific information.”