Surat — Pollution Health Impact
608 days of CPCB data (2022–2024), translated through WHO 2021, Berkeley Earth and EPIC AQLI methods. Based on CPCB station data, 2016–present.
Gujarat · Live Surat AQI →
Living in Surat is the population-level health-equivalent of smoking 2.8 cigarettes a day — roughly 1,014 cigarettes a year. On average, that chronic exposure shortens life expectancy by about 5.5 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 Surat meet?
24-hour PM2.5 compliance vs WHO 2021 targets.
- AQG7 days (1.2%)
- IT-448 days (7.9%)
- IT-382 days (13.5%)
- IT-2168 days (27.6%)
- IT-192 days (15.1%)
- Above IT-1211 days (34.7%)
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 Surat's 5.5 year estimate.
- Heart + stroke: 3.7y
- COPD: 0.8y
- Child ALRI: 0.8y
- Lung cancer: 0.2y
Worst and best months
Drill into full monthly pattern on the seasonal Surat page →
High-risk days for vulnerable residents
- Days above WHO IT-3 (37.5 µg/m³) — pregnancy & infant risk elevated
- 471 (77.5%)
- Days above WHO IT-1 (75 µg/m³) — high risk for children under 5
- 211 (34.7%)
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 Surat compares to nearby cities
- Similar exposureKatni3.1 cigs/day · 6.1 y lost · +0.3 vs Surat
- Similar exposureGuwahati3.0 cigs/day · 6.0 y lost · +0.3 vs Surat
- Cleaner peerUlhasnagar2.8 cigs/day · 5.5 y lost · -0.0 vs Surat
- Dirtier peerPrayagraj2.8 cigs/day · 5.5 y lost · +0.0 vs Surat
What the numbers say
Overview
Surat's air pollution translates to about 2.8 passive cigarettes per resident per day. That's 1,014 cigarette-equivalents annually, inhaled without choice.
The data story
EPIC's AQLI research attributes about 5.5 life-years lost per person from this chronic exposure. The WHO Air Quality Guideline was met on just 7 of 608 days (1.2%); 211 days (34.7%) 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 4.1/day — and eases in July (1.4/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 471 days (77.5%) above WHO IT-3 meaningfully lowers exposure — especially for pregnant residents and children under 5.