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Urgent action needed in South Asia to curb deadly air pollution

Published

3 years ago

2023/01/6

South Asia is home to nine of the world’s ten cities with the worst air pollution, which causes an estimated two million premature deaths across the region each year and incurs significant economic costs. A new World Bank report shows that there are economically feasible, cost-effective solutions to achieve clean air in the region, but this requires countries to coordinate policies and investments.

Striving for Clean Air: Air Pollution and Public Health in South Asia, released recently says concentrations of fine particulate matter such as soot and small dust (PM 2.5) in some of the region’s most densely populated and poor areas are up to 20 times higher than what WHO considers healthy (5 µg/m?). Exposure to such extreme air pollution has impacts ranging from stunting and reduced cognitive development in children, to respiratory infections and chronic and debilitating diseases. This drives up healthcare costs, lowers a country’s productive capacity, and leads to lost days worked.

Large industries, powerplants and vehicles are dominant sources of air pollution around the world, but in South Asia, other sources make substantial additional contributions. These include combustion of solid fuels for cooking and heating, emissions from small industries such as brick kilns, burning of municipal and agricultural waste, and cremation.

Air pollution travels long distances— crossing municipal, state, and national boundaries—and gets trapped in large “airsheds” that are shaped by climatology and geography. The report identifies six major airsheds in South Asia where spatial interdependence in air quality is high. Particulate matter in each airshed comes from various sources and locations, for example less than half of the air pollution in South Asia’s major cities is produced within cities.

“Persistently hazardous levels of air pollution have caused a major public health crisis in South Asia that demands urgent action,” said Martin Raiser, World Bank Vice President for South Asia. “Curbing air pollution requires not only tackling its specific sources, but also close coordination across local and national jurisdictional boundaries. Regional cooperation can help implement cost-effective joint strategies that leverage the interdependent nature of air quality.”

Several South Asian countries have adopted policies to help improve air quality, but their focus on mitigating air pollution generated within cities is yielding insufficient results. The report shows that current policy measures will only be partially successful in reducing PM 2.5 concentrations across South Asia even if fully implemented. To achieve greater progress, the focus of policy makers should expand into other sectors, particularly small manufacturing, agriculture, residential cooking, and waste management.

The report analyzes four scenarios to reduce air pollution with varying degrees of policy implementation and cooperation among countries. The most cost-effective scenario, which calls for full coordination between airsheds, would cut the average exposure of PM 2.5 in South Asia to 30 µg/m³ at a cost of $278 million per µg/m? of reduced exposure, and save more than 750,000 lives annually.

“The economic benefits of policies to reduce air pollution in South Asia exceed the economic costs by a large margin,” said Hans Timmer, World Bank Chief Economist for South Asia. “But optimal solutions depend on several factors such as better monitoring systems, more scientific capacity, greater coordination between governments, and behavioral change among farmers, small firms, and households.”

To this end, the report offers a three-phased roadmap:

• Phase 1: Sets the condition for airshed wide coordination by expanding the monitoring of air pollution beyond the big cities, sharing data with the public, creating or strengthening credible scientific institutes that analyze airsheds, and taking a whole-of-government approach.

• Phase 2: Abatement interventions are broadened beyond the traditional targets of powerplants, large factories and transportation. During this phase major progress can be made in reducing air pollution from agriculture, solid waste management, cookstoves, brick kilns, and other small firms. At the same time, airshed-wide standards can be introduced.

• Phase 3: Economic incentives are finetuned to enable private-sector solutions, to address distributional impacts, and to exploit synergies with climate change policies. In this phase trading of emission permits can also be introduced to optimize abatement across jurisdictions and firms.

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In order to safeguard the future of the country, a quality human resource must be developed. – Prime Minister

Published

1 hour ago

2026/02/1

Priyan

Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya stated that in order to ensure the economic, social, and cultural security of the country, it is essential to develop a quality human resource, and that education plays a vital role in achieving this goal.

The Prime Minister emphasized that the government is committed to bring about a transformation in the education sector, and that the government will continue to move forward by overcoming obstacles encountered along the way, guided by a clear vision and purpose.

The Prime Minister made these remarks while addressing the EDCS Sisu Nena Pranama scholarship award ceremony held on Saturday (31) at Temple Trees, organized to recognize the children of the members of the Education Co-operative Society (EDCS) who have been selected to state universities for the academic year2023/2024.

Elaborating further, the Prime Minister noted that this program, organized by the Education Service Employees– Co-operative Thrift and Credit Society Ltd, is not merely about providing scholarships, but is an occasion that recognizes and appreciates the dedication of students and their parents who are preparing to shoulder the responsibility of the country’s future.

The Prime Minister also pointed out that it is a remarkable achievement that a society which began in 1930 with just 58 members and a membership fee of one rupee has today grown into the largest cooperative society in South Asia, with approximately 215,000 members.

The Prime Minister further highlighted how rapidly the world is changing, and the increasing necessity of developing human resources in the face of economic and environmental crises. She stressed that the education system must be transformed from the level of school education itself to align with the demands of the modern world, and that students entering universities should become leaders and active participants in this transformation.

Noting that out of nearly 300,000 students who enter primary education each year, only about 40,000 gain admission to universities, the Prime Minister urged students to make use of this opportunity for the development of the country.

Addressing the occasion, Deputy Minister of Labour and General Secretary of Ceylon Teachers Service Union, Mahinda Jayasinghe, stated that due to corruption-free management, it was possible to increase the financial stability of the society from Rs. 1,200 million to Rs. 1,700 million within a short period of approximately nine months.

Under this year’s program, scholarships amount to over Rs. 13.7 million were awarded to 2,292 students who have been selected to state universities.

This scholarship program, which initiated in 1984 with 15 students and an initial fund of Rs. 3,500, has been conducted continuously for 41 years. At present, scholarships of up to a maximum of Rs. 75,000 per student are awarded, demonstrating the collective strength and solidarity of the teaching community.

The event was attended by the Chairman of the Education Development Cooperative Society, Lal Kumara, the Western Province Director of Education, Darshani Iddamalgoda, along with other officials.

[Prime Minister’s Media Division]

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Police face 32,000-officer shortage:IGP

Published

6 hours ago

2026/02/1

Thilina Walpola

IGP Priyantha Weerasooriya says that the Police is facing a shortage of nearly 32,000 personnel and is currently operating well below its required strength.

He made these remarks while attending a ceremony held on Friday morning (30) to recognise the contribution of fingerprint officers, crime analysis officers and forensic photographers attached to the Criminal Investigation Department for their role in solving crimes.

Addressing the gathering, the IGP said that around 2,500 police officers are due to retire this year, with a further 2,700 officers expected to retire next year.

In view of the growing cadre shortfall, he said plans are underway to recruit 10,000 new officers to the Sri Lanka Police in the future.

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Lanka’s Sabina Yousaf wins Mrs. Photogenic, Second Runner-Up at Mrs. World

Published

6 hours ago

2026/02/1

Thilina Walpola

Sri Lanka earned international recognition at the 41st Mrs. World pageant, with Sabina Yousaf being named Second Runner-Up, marking a notable achievement for the country at the prestigious global competition.

In addition to securing a top-three finish, Yousaf also won the Mrs. Photogenic mini-title and placed among the Top 20 contestants, underscoring her strong performance on the international stage.

The Mrs. World 2025 crown was won by Chanita Seedaket Craythorne of Thailand, while Paige Ewing of the United States was declared First Runner-Up.

The grand finale was held on 29 January in Las Vegas, Nevada, and featured contestants from more than 60 countries competing for the coveted title.

The announcement of the Top Three finalists placed Sri Lanka alongside leading global pageant contenders, reinforcing the country’s growing presence in international pageantry.

Final Results – Mrs. World 2025:

Winner: Thailand – Chanita Seedaket Craythorne

First Runner-Up: United States – Paige Ewing

Second Runner-Up: Sri Lanka – Sabina Yousaf