‘We Are Dying’: Top Doc On India’s Air Crisis, Links Pollution To Heart Attacks

India Today

This special report focuses on India's severe air pollution crisis and its devastating health impacts, featuring Dr. Ashok Seth, Chairman of Fortis Escorts Heart Institute. In a stark assessment of the situation, Dr. Seth states, ‘I don't have a hope.’ The discussion highlights the failure of authorities to tackle the problem, which has turned cities into 'gas chambers'. Dr. Seth confirms that the hazardous air quality is directly linked to a surge in heart attacks, strokes, and respiratory illnesses like asthma and bronchitis. The report underscores the grave, long-term risks for a generation of children, who face developing permanently damaged lungs and other organs. Referencing a Lancet study, the anchor points out the established connection between air pollution and mortality in India.

Transcript

00:00What are they waiting for? Why is there no Grab 3 just yet?

00:05Are we better or worse? What's happening in the hospitals?

00:08Let's try and get answers to all those questions.

00:10First up, let's see the impact of AQI to your health directly

00:15if you're one of those who are not convinced just yet.

00:19Joining me now is Dr. Ashok Seth,

00:21Chairman of Fortis Scott's Health Institute in the National Capital.

00:24Can't think of a better name to give us a perspective on things as well.

00:27Dr. Seth, my first question to you is this.

00:31Are we at a point of no return with what is happening with AQI

00:36and what it does to our bodies?

00:39Are we now going to see a generation of kids

00:42who will have lungs and other body organs not fully formed

00:49because of air pollution?

00:53So, firstly, commendable that you bring up such important points.

00:57For the public and for our health.

01:01The second aspect is this very straight question

01:05that you've really pointedly asked.

01:07Do I have a hope?

01:08I don't have a hope.

01:11Years after years after years, we've seen pollutions rise.

01:15And fascinatingly, the blame game continues on and on

01:19as to what is the cause of the pollution,

01:23but there's still nothing done about.

01:25We talk about the health of the nation.

01:27Can you believe that we just talk about pollution this month?

01:32Actually, for the whole of the year, we live in unhealthy.

01:35It only becomes hazardous at this time.

01:38Hazardous means that we now are in a gas chamber.

01:42We were anyway, have been throughout the year in bad pollution,

01:47which in the West would have been considered unsafe.

01:50Even our best days are considered unsafe for the West.

01:54And, you know, we talk about increase in heart disease

01:57and we look at causes for heart disease

01:59and we tell the whole population to exercise.

02:03One of the biggest causes of increase of heart disease

02:06and heart attacks in this country

02:07has actually been the pollution.

02:10And this pollution, by the way,

02:11does not just exist in big cities.

02:13Go down to even smaller towns.

02:14I think there is a lack of will

02:18and a lack of enforcement

02:21and a lack of it becoming a national agenda.

02:24Why shouldn't it be a national agenda?

02:26How many countries do you have in your mind

02:29where you go and it's polluted?

02:31I can name those countries,

02:32or perhaps there are only 20 countries across the world,

02:34like ours, in terms of pollution.

02:37Anywhere you go, you go to the whole of Africa,

02:39you go to the whole of Europe,

02:41you go to the whole of even Asia Pacific,

02:43and you have clean air to breathe.

02:45I just can't understand why we as a nation

02:47just continue to live when, at this time,

02:51the heart attacks have increased by 2,200%.

02:54We have twice more heart attacks.

02:56There are people getting admitted with strokes.

02:58There are clearly elderlies being affected

03:01with chest infections and pneumonias.

03:05We are dying.

03:08And you're right.

03:10What is going to happen to our children

03:12who, anyway, are developing asthma, bronchitis,

03:16pneumonias, and they're going to have bad lungs

03:19for time to come on?

03:21We talk about so many big things,

03:23and yet this is the most important thing,

03:27most important hazard that we face.

03:31Especially, of course, in big metro cities,

03:33we face it all the time.

03:35Think of those young people who are on the streets

03:37doing their job, meeting their deadlines

03:40in a motorcycle and in a scooter.

03:42We have a lot more to do because it's our own children

03:45who probably will suffer from such bad lung,

03:49heart, and brain conditions in times to come

03:51that we will one day be saying,

03:53gosh, we wish we had better air to breathe.

03:56We have every luxury?

03:58Fine.

03:58We can provide every system to most of our population.

04:02We say the majority of our population is now insured

04:06for their health.

04:08But are they insured against the air that we breathe?

04:12Are they insured for just clean, nice environment and air?

04:17They're not.

04:19And I think, therefore, there is no intent.

04:21I agree with that.

04:22There is no intent.

04:23I understand that.

04:24I completely echo your sentiment as well.

04:27But like I said, I'm feeling pretty helpless.

04:29We've been covering the air pollution story

04:31for at least a decade now.

04:33Yes.

04:33It started with the petition at the Supreme Court.

04:35Kids had petitioned.

04:37That's when GRAB guidelines came in.

04:38That's when we thought we had moved forward.

04:41But this year seems to be a different story.

04:45I want to understand from you

04:46in what you're seeing in your own OPD,

04:49what you're hearing in the medical fraternity,

04:51is this year better or worse,

04:54say, compared to the past five years that you've seen?

04:57Because I understand the impact of sustained toxic air,

05:01that cumulative impact is also building up.

05:04But this year particularly, is it better or worse?

05:08It's very difficult to actually say that

05:11unless we methodically analyze every data of a patient input.

05:17What we can say is that we certainly suffering,

05:20at least I can personally say,

05:23that I'm more worried and scared this year

05:25than I was in the previous years.

05:28The pollution just seems to be overwhelming,

05:30even for me, even for my parents on an individual basis,

05:33my father who's elderly,

05:36for all of us.

05:37If I stand outside my eyes hurt.

05:40I was yesterday on a personal basis just on a phone

05:45and the signal drops in my home.

05:48So I stood outside at eight o'clock just talking on the phone.

05:54And by the time I was entering the house,

05:56my eyes were hurting.

05:57And that had never happened to me earlier.

05:59And it was so surprising.

06:01And that's when I realized that is so dangerous

06:04to even stand outside for half an hour outside the home.

06:09So yes, we can't say it unless we have statistics.

06:13I don't want to claim that we have statistics.

06:15We're seeing a lot of patients.

06:17We're seeing it worsening.

06:19We see it every...

06:20But I think year after year, year after year,

06:23it's been only worse.

06:24I don't recall a better day than the previous year

06:28or a worse, you know, a better year than the previous year.

06:33I only recall worse after year is worse

06:36year after year after year.

06:39Dr. Saeed, your words are powerful.

06:41I think they have a lot of meaning

06:42and I really hope it reaches those

06:44who can actually bring an impact

06:46when we can land Indians on the moon,

06:49when we can go and do some crazy stuff in space,

06:53when we have the tech to ensure that, you know,

06:56robotics is taking over in medicine,

06:58in other fields as well.

06:59Why can't we solve the problem of air pollution?

07:01I think that's what's very, very, very disturbing.

07:05And on your issue,

07:06and on that issue that you said of statistics,

07:09the Lancet report, I think, makes it very, very clear.

07:13Linking air pollution to deaths now across the globe,

07:16especially here in India,

07:17to doctors now saying that you live in polluted air,

07:20you are at a high risk category.

07:22I think we can't get more clear than that.

07:24And I think it's appalling

07:27that we have to continue to do show after show,

07:30year after year, month after month,

07:32to try and raise this matter

07:33and not get any visible solution on this one.

07:37And I thank Dr. Saeed for joining us

07:38with his valuable time on this very important story.

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