Nagapattinam — Pollution Health Impact
47 days of CPCB data (2024–2024), translated through WHO 2021, Berkeley Earth and EPIC AQLI methods. Based on CPCB station data, 2016–present.
Tamil Nadu · Live Nagapattinam AQI →
Living in Nagapattinam is the population-level health-equivalent of smoking 1.6 cigarettes a day — roughly 589 cigarettes a year. On average, that chronic exposure shortens life expectancy by about 3.0 years per resident.
Cigarette-equivalence (Berkeley Earth 2015) and life-years lost (EPIC AQLI) are peer-reviewed communication heuristics, not clinical diagnoses. Full sources linked on the methodology page.
Headline impact numbers
Cigarettes/day by year
Annual average cigarette-equivalent.
Clean-air days (NAQI ≤ 50) by year
Days when NAQI stayed in the “Good” band.
Which WHO tier did Nagapattinam meet?
24-hour PM2.5 compliance vs WHO 2021 targets.
- AQG0 days (0.0%)
- IT-414 days (29.8%)
- IT-316 days (34.0%)
- IT-29 days (19.1%)
- IT-18 days (17.0%)
- Above IT-10 days (0.0%)
WHO AQG (15) · IT-4 (25) · IT-3 (37.5) · IT-2 (50) · IT-1 (75) µg/m³ (24-hour PM2.5).
Life-years lost, by disease
Applying WHO's global attribution (68/14/14/4) to Nagapattinam's 3.0 year estimate.
- Heart + stroke: 2.0y
- COPD: 0.4y
- Child ALRI: 0.4y
- Lung cancer: 0.1y
Worst and best months
Drill into full monthly pattern on the seasonal Nagapattinam page →
High-risk days for vulnerable residents
- Days above WHO IT-3 (37.5 µg/m³) — pregnancy & infant risk elevated
- 17 (36.2%)
- Days above WHO IT-1 (75 µg/m³) — high risk for children under 5
- 0 (0.0%)
Source: WHO 2021 AQG interim-target risk framework; WHO 2024 ambient-air fact sheet identifies children under 5 and pregnant residents as the most vulnerable groups.
How Nagapattinam compares to nearby cities
- Similar exposureKannur1.8 cigs/day · 3.3 y lost · +0.2 vs Nagapattinam
- Similar exposureThiruvananthapuram1.8 cigs/day · 3.3 y lost · +0.2 vs Nagapattinam
- Cleaner peerKozhikode1.6 cigs/day · 2.9 y lost · -0.0 vs Nagapattinam
- Dirtier peerRishīkesh1.7 cigs/day · 3.1 y lost · +0.1 vs Nagapattinam
What the numbers say
Overview
Across 47 days of CPCB monitoring, the average adult in Nagapattinam has breathed air with the health-equivalent of smoking 1.6 cigarettes a day — roughly 589 cigarettes every year (Berkeley Earth, 2015).
The data story
EPIC's AQLI research attributes about 3.0 life-years lost per person from this chronic exposure. The WHO Air Quality Guideline was met on just 0 of 47 days (0.0%); 0 days (0.0%) exceeded even the 75 µg/m³ Interim Target-1 threshold.
Why this pattern
The burden concentrates in November — when the average cigarette-equivalent climbs to 1.9/day — and eases in October (1.3/day). Globally, WHO attributes 68% of PM2.5 deaths to heart disease and stroke, with the remainder split across COPD, childhood ALRI, and lung cancer.
What to do with this
Cigarette-equivalence is a communication tool, not a medical verdict. Still, the direction is clear: time indoors with a HEPA unit and a good-fit mask outdoors during the 17 days (36.2%) above WHO IT-3 meaningfully lowers exposure — especially for pregnant residents and children under 5.