How polluted is polluted and at what point does it really get dangerous for your health and life? BOOM Explains and looks at the revised air pollution norms announced by the WHO.

Karthik Ganesan, Fellow at the Council on Energy, Environment and Water ( CEEW) based in New Delhi, says that the Indian standard of air pollution is about 8 times the global standards. Poor air quality is the leading risk factor for various mortalities. Ultimately, somebody could die of a cardiovascular or a pulmonary disorder , but air pollution is the leading factor to exacerbate their existing condition. It potentially results in about 1.7 million annual deaths in the country and it is more significant than tobacco smoke, malnourishment as well as sanitation related microbial diseases that are prevalent in India. Air pollution is indeed the crisis of our times.

Watch BOOM's Govindraj Ethiraj in conversation with Karthik Ganesan on how Delhi became the centre of conversation on poor air quality in India, how air pollution must be tackled at policy level and why WHO has changed the air quality measurement norms.