A Breath of Change : Solutions for Cleaner Air in the Indo-Gangetic Plains and Himalayan Foothills

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Air pollution across the Indo-Gangetic Plains and Himalayan Foothills is one of the most pressing health and development challenges in South Asia. Nearly one billion people are exposed to hazardous air every day, leading to around one million premature deaths annually and shortening average life expectancy by more than three years. The economic cost is immense, with an estimated 10 percent of regional GDP lost to reduced productivity, illness, and related damages.

A Breath of Change: Solutions for Cleaner Air in the Indo-Gangetic Plains and Himalayan Foothills report presents a practical roadmap for achieving the region's shared target of reducing annual average fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) concentrations below 35 micrograms per cubic meter by 2035 (cutting current concentrations by more than half). Building on the diagnostics and country experiences synthesized in Striving for Clean Air (2023), it moves from why clean air matters and what drives pollution to how solutions can be implemented at scale. The report focuses on coordinated, feasible, and evidence-based approaches that countries can adapt and deploy to deliver sustained reductions in pollution and progressively cleaner air for communities across the region.

The report offers sector-specific solutions across three core areas that together can drive clean air outcomes:

• Abatement, which focuses on reducing emissions at their source across clean cooking, industry, transport, agriculture, and waste
• Protection, which strengthens health and education systems to safeguard people, especially children and vulnerable groups, from exposure during the transition
• Strong institutions, market-based incentives, and regional collaboration to drive and sustain multi-sectoral and multi-jurisdictional progress.

The report presents the clean air solutions, along the "4Is": Information to guide decisions and accountability; Incentives to shift behavior and investment; Institutions to coordinate across jurisdictions, set and enforce standards; and Infrastructure to enable cleaner technology transitions. These elements together form the foundation for cleaner, healthier, and more resilient development. Achieving the 35 by 35 target will save lives, strengthen economies, and help build a future where the people of the Indo-Gangetic Plains and Himalayan Foothills can breathe clean air.

The report received financial support from the World Bank's Resilient Asia Program, funded by the UK government's Foreign Commonwealth Development Office and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation. The UK funding is delivered through Climate Action for a Resilient Asia, a flagship regional programme to build climate resilience in South Asia, Southeast Asia and the Pacific islands. The report also received funding from the Korean Green Growth Trust Fund.

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