Lok Sabha Question No. 2977 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-08-03
Subject: Average Life
Ministry: HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE
Asked by: HARISH CHANDRA MEENA, SAUGATA ROY

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2977 TO BE ANSWERED ON 3 rd AUGUST, 2018

## AVERAGE LIFE

## 2977. SHRI HARISH MEENA: PROF. SAUGATA ROY:

Will the Minister of HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE be pleased to state:

(a) whether the Government has conducted any study on the differences of th  tenure of life of people in various States of the country and if so, the details thereof;

(b) the present ten ure of average life of various States, male and female;

(c) whether the use of chemicals and pollution has caused various ailments and ill - health of the people of the country; and

(d) if so, the details thereof and the action taken in this regard?

## ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE (SHRI ASHWINI KUMAR CHOUBEY)

(a) & (b): According to India: Health of the Nation's States -The India State -Level Disease Burden Initiative report prepared by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR),  the Public Health  Foundation  of  India  and  the  Institute  for  Health  Metrics  and  Evaluation  whi published  as a part of Global Disease Burden study 2016 through funding  from Indian Co of Medical Research, Department of He alth Research, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation,  life expectancy at birth i in 1990 was 58.3 years for males and 59.7 years for females. By 2016, life expectancy a increased to 66.9 years for males and 70.3 years for females. India has made substantial pr in improving the life expectancy at birth. However, life expectancy varied widely betwe states of India. In 2016, the range was from 66.8 years in Uttar Pradesh t o 78.7 years in Kerala for  females,  and  63.5  years  in  Assam  to  73.8  years  in  Kerala  for  males.  Life  expecta birth isdefined as the average number of years that a newborn could expect to live if he or were to pass through life subject to the age - specific mortality rates of a given period. State wis Life expectancy at birth in 2016 is annexed.

(c)& (d): As per the above mentioned report the contribution of air pollution to disease remained high in India between 1990 and 2016, with levels of exposure among the highest in the world.  It  causes  burden  through  a  mix  of  non -communicable  and  infectious  diseases,  mainly cardiovascular  diseases,  chronic  respiratory  diseases,  and  lower  respiratory  infectio burden of household air pollution d ecreased during this period due to decreasing use of soli fuels for cooking, and that of outdoor air pollution increased due to a variety of pollu power production, industry, vehicles, construction, and waste burning. Household air po was responsible for 5%  of  the total disease burden in India in  2016,  and out air pollution for 6%.

Ministry  of  Health  & Family  Welfare  had  constituted  a  'Steering  Committee  on Air Pollution and Health related issues' with the objectives of collating and critically appraising evidence available both at Indian and global level linking air po lut on to adverse health effects, and providing recommendations for policy and programmatic responses across sectors which both enable mitigation of exposure and adaptation for harm reduction. Import recommendations  of  the  committee  include, reduction  in householdair pollution by the  use ofclean sources of energy for cooking, reduction in emissions from vehicles: promotion public transport, better quality of engines and fuel; enforcing ban on agri -waste/trash burning and/ or to find alternative mechanisms for the same, discourage the use of diesel generator sets regular monitoring  of  emissions  from  Industries,  construction  sites;  regular  monitoring  of air quality; public  awareness  on  effects  of air pollution on  health  focusing  on  vulnerable  groups:  elderly, pregnant women, mothers and under 5 children; early diagnosis and management of diseases caused by air pollution.

Control of AirPollution needs multisectorial action. The report of the committee had identified  important  actions  on  the  part  of  some  departments.  The  report  was  circula different stakeholders and a multisectorial workshop was conducted with different stakeh for sensitization.

To build capacity within the Ministry, an Environment Health and Climate Chang Cell (EH&CC Cell) has been created in the Directorate General of Health Services (Dte. G Also separate Divisions have been created for (a) Environmental & Occupational Health and (b) Climate Change and Health, at National Centre for Disease Control, Delhi under the Dte.GHS

In  order  to  combat  major  Non  Communicable  Diseases  (NCDs),  the  National Programme for Prevention and Control of Cancer, Diabetes, Cardiovascu lar Diseases and Stroke (NPCDCS) was launched in 2010, with focus on strengthening infrastructure, human resour development, health promotion, early diagnosis, management and referral for interventions district level activities. This programme has been scaled up and NCD clinics have been set up in 435 districts in the country. Interventions of prevention and management of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary  Disease  (COPD)  are  included  under  the  programme  to  prevent  and  manage  the chronic respiratory disea ses.

The initiatives taken by other Ministries / Departments include the following:

Central  Pollution  Control  Board  (CPCB)  under  Ministry  of  Environment  Forests  & Climate Change (MOEF&CC) is doing real time monitoring of air pollution level in major c ities including Delhi and NCR. The environmental appraisal of development project is undertaken per the provision of Environment Impact Assessment(EIA) notification 2006. As of now, o consultants accredited with Quality Council of India (QCI)/ Nation al Accred tation Board for Education and Training(NABET) are allowed to prepare EIA. For prevention of trash burning etc. rules are notified. States and CPCBs have given guidelines for controlling pollution in bri clin / stone crushing plants.

De partment of Agriculture Cooperation  &  Farmer's  Welfare  has  taken various initiatives regarding management of crop residue. The Ministry of Power has directed NTPC to source up to 10 percent of its thermal fuel requirements from straw pellets. The move is aimed at luring farmers away from stubble burning.

Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has taken initiatives to promote alternate fuels in vehicles. Electric vehicles are being given push by MoRTH. India's first multi modal  Electric  veh icle  passenger  transport  project  was  lunched  in  Nagpur  with  integrat solution of buses, taxis and E - Rickshaws.

Urban transport and metro policies aim to promote healthy transport. Swachh Bharat Mission - Urban  (SBM - U)  is  under  implementation  in 4,041  statutory  towns  in  the  country which  aims  at  making  urban  India  free  from  open  defecation  and  achieving  100%  scienti management of Municipal Solid Waste.

Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) aims to safeguard the health of women & children  b y  providing  them  with  a  clean  cooking  fuel -LPG,  so  that  they  don't  have  to compromise their health in smoky kitchens or wander in unsafe areas collecting firewood.

| Life expectancy in 2016 (years)   | Life expectancy in 2016 (years)   | Life expectancy in 2016 (years)   |
|-----------------------------------|-----------------------------------|-----------------------------------|
|                                   | M ale                             | Female                            |
| Andhra Pradesh                    | 67.3                              | 71.9                              |
| Arunachal Pradesh                 | 68.2                              | 72.7                              |
| Assam                             | 63.5                              | 66.9                              |
| Bihar                             | 67.7                              | 67.7                              |
| Chhattisgarh                      | 64.6                              | 68.3                              |
| Goa                               | 73.0                              | 78.4                              |
| Gujarat                           | 67.3                              | 71.5                              |
| Haryana                           | 65.0                              | 71.3                              |
| Himachal Pradesh                  | 71.0                              | 76.9                              |
| Jammu & Kashmir                   | 68.3                              | 71.8                              |
| Jharkhand                         | 67.0                              | 67.8                              |
| Karnataka                         | 67.1                              | 71.1                              |
| Kerala                            | 73.8                              | 78.7                              |
| Madhya Pradesh                    | 65.3                              | 69.3                              |
| Maharashtra                       | 65.3                              | 69.3                              |
| Manipur                           | 68.0                              | 72.8                              |
| Meghalaya                         | 66.8                              | 72.4                              |
| Mizoram                           | 68.3                              | 73.8                              |
| Nagaland                          | 69.1                              | 74.5                              |
| Odisha                            | 66.1                              | 68.6                              |
| Punjab                            | 68.0                              | 72.2                              |
| Rajasthan                         | 65.5                              | 70.1                              |
| Sikkim                            | 70.5                              | 75.8                              |
| Tamil Nadu                        | 68.9                              | 73.5                              |
| Telangana                         | 69.4                              | 73.2                              |
| Tripura                           | 66.3                              | 71.5                              |
| Uttar Pradesh                     | 64.6                              | 66.8                              |
| Uttarakhand                       | 65.3                              | 71.1                              |
| West Bengal                       | 68.1                              | 71.3                              |
| Delhi                             | 70.8                              | 74.7                              |

Note: information for UTs not available except for Delhi.

Source: India: Health of the Nation's States -t he India State - Level Disease Burden Initiative report (2017).