Evaluation of Health Risks Associated with Household Air Pollution in Rural Areas of Telangana State in India

Household Air Pollution (HAP) contributing from open fires or inefficient stoves fed by biomass, coal and kerosene are being used by 2.4 billion people across the world that has resulted in 3.2 million deaths per year. In the present study, Particulate Matter (PM10 and PM2.5) were investigated in biomass and LPG based households during summer and monsoon seasons, followed by evaluation of health risks for women in rural areas of Telangana state in India. Health impact and risk assessment of air pollution were estimated by WHO developed software tool called AIRQ+ . PM10 and PM2.5 concentrations in biomass households were ~1.8 and 2.7 times greater than those of LPG due to high emission factor of the biomass. Health risk assessment of women in biomass households exhibited high non-carcinogenic risk against LPG. The health impact assessment revealed high incidence per 100,000 population for an acute exposure of asthma, unhealthy days and lost workdays of 1009, 318 and 312, respectively. However, chronic exposure has resulted in stroke (77.23), ischemic heart disease (71.15), acute lower respiratory infections (51.93) and chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (33.26). This study establishes the HAP contributing from fuel-type and evaluates health risks associated with the PM exposure.