Reducing air pollution by around 20% could help India avert nearly $85 billion in annual economic losses by 2030, says a new report from Dalberg Advisors and the Clean Air Fund.
A big chunk of this comes from people working while sick, meaning less gets done at work.
Just in 2024, healthcare costs linked to air pollution reached $12.3 billion.
In 2024 pollution cost India $260bn
In 2024 alone, air pollution drained around $260 billion from India's economy, almost 6% of the country's GDP.
It is not just about health: poor air quality leads to missed workdays, hurts productivity, and even keeps people from going out shopping or eating at restaurants, which hits retail and tourism hard.
All this shows why tackling air pollution matters for both our well-being and the economy.