Pollution increases Covid-19 risk: Study

Citizens living in pollutionhit metro cities like Mumbai and Pune are at a greater risk of contracting Covid19 than residents of other areas a study has found Published in peerreviewed Elsevier Journal the study by Indian scientists has established a link between fine particulate matter PM25 and Coronavirus outbreak across IndiaCovid19 and air pollution have a double impact on peoplersquos lungs says a coauthorldquoWe found a significant correlation between the district level air pollution data and Covid19 casesrdquo said lead author Dr Saroj Kumar Sahu In our study we saw regions with huge amounts of fossil fuel such as petrol diesel and coal combustion in transport and industrial activities experiencing a lot more Covid19 casesrdquo said Dr Saroj Kumar Sahu lead author of the studyThe study was carried out by scientists from Utkal University Bhubaneswar IITMPune NITRourkela and IITBhubaneswarDr Sahu said health effects of air pollution and Covid19 also had similar linkages ldquoPM25 are small sized particles affecting the upper respiratory system and Covid19 too has shown similar health impactsrdquoThe study considered cases between March and November 2020 while national PM 25 emissions load were estimated from base year 2019 Maharashtra recorded the secondhighest emission loadmdash8283 gigagram per year GgYr of PM25 after Uttar Pradesh Till November 5 last year Dr Sahu said Maharashtra had recorded 1719 lakh cases the highest in the countryOf the 16 cities captured in the study Mumbai and Pune recorded the third and fourth highest lsquobad air quality daysrsquo respectively In the given period Mumbai recorded 264 lakh cases and 10445 deaths the highest in the country while Pune saw 338 lakh Covid19 cases and 7060 fatalitiesldquoWhat is worrying is that there is evidence that the Coronavirus sticks to fine particles like PM25 allowing them to move from one part to another by making the airborne transmission more effectiveThrough our analysis it has become clear that rising pollution load is becoming more of a catalyst to aggravate Covid19 casesrdquo said Dr Sahu He said polluted hotspots are also triggering longterm effects and more studies are needed to understand thisDr Gufran Beig Senior Scientist amp Founder Project Director System of Air Quality Weather Forecasting and Research SAFAR and coauthor of the paper said that at hotspots within Maharashtra exposure to air pollution can weaken lungs ldquoWhen humaninduced emissions are combined with the impact of Covid19 the damage to lungs will be much faster and worsen health conditionsrdquo he said The study also presented two other hotspotsmdashNagpur and Chandrapurmdashthat witnessed high pollution as well as higher Covid19 cases and casualtiesDoctorsrsquo takeldquoThe virus may be airborne but canrsquot correlate it with pollution In fact in the lockdown the pollution levels had dipped but cases were on the rise There are other variables like congestion which canrsquot be ruled out Also Delhirsquos poor air quality in winters is a known thing Covid19 cases were more post winterrdquo said Dr Rajesh Sharma Pulmonologist Saifee HospitalDr Lancelot Pinto pulmonary medicine specialist PD Hinduja Hospital said densely populated areas with too many vehicles can lead to more fine particulate matterldquoWhether the number of Covid19 cases reflect this population density and movement both risk factors for Covid19 or whether there is a causal link between the exposure to such fine particulate matter and the disease is difficult to prove However even if the fine particulate matter is a surrogate for overcrowding and movement the message that we need to improve air quality cannot be emphasised enoughrdquo16No of big cities that were studied by the researchers