The Challenges of Health and Environment in India: A Study

Abstract

A substantial burden of communicable and non-communicable diseases in the developing and developed countries is attributable to number of environmental risk factors. WHO estimates that the environmental factors are responsible for an estimated 24.0 per cent of the global burden of disease in terms of healthy life years lost and 23.0 per cent of all deaths; children being the worst sufferers (Narain, 2012). Given that the environment is linked with most of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs, 2000) and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs, 2016), without proper attention to the environmental risk factors and their management, it will be difficult to achieve many MDGs and SDGs in globe particularly in developing countries. The environmental disease burden is attributable to a few serious risk factors which include insecure water and sanitation, exposure to indoor smoke from cooking fuel, outdoor air pollution, exposure to chemicals such as arsenic, and climate change and second, that environment, health and sanitation aspects must become, as a matter of urgency, a national priority, both in terms of policy and resources allocation. Environmental sanitation is a major public health issue in India. Recent interventional studies on environmental sanitation in India highlighted the importance of prioritizing control strategies. This paper discusses various intervention strategies related to environmental, sanitation as well as health in India and emphasizes to prioritize it according to the need of country.