Mumbai: As air pollution increasingly shapes the health realities of urban India, on Saturday, Mumbai witnessed the launch of the Mumbai Forum for Clean Air, a health-led platform aimed at strengthening collective action on air pollution and climate change. Convened by the Lung Care Foundation (LCF) through its national initiative Doctors for Clean Air and Climate Action (DFCA), the Forum brings together medical professionals, public health experts, civil society, and institutional stakeholders to reframe air pollution as an urgent public health challenge rather than a seasonal environmental concern.
Partners Mumbai Climate Week
The Forum was supported by Indian Medical Association-Mumbai, Khushiyaan Foundation, Ashok One Hospital, and is an official community event partner of Mumbai Climate Week.
Dr. Mehul Thakkar, Co-Chairperson, MFFCA, drawed attention to Mumbai’s air quality index on the day of Forum on Saturday, which stood at 187, and highlighted that even areas surrounding Sanjay Gandhi National Park recorded hazardous levels with an AQI of 203, underscoring the widespread and indiscriminate nature of air pollution in the city.
Pollution No Longer Episodic Crisis,
The Forum was launched with a clear focus on Mumbai’s evolving air quality challenges and their growing clinical footprint from rising respiratory and cardiovascular illnesses to long-term morbidity patterns increasingly observed across healthcare settings. It emphasised that poor air quality is no longer an episodic crisis but a daily exposure affecting homes, schools, workplaces, and hospitals across the city.
Prof. Dr. Arvind Kumar, Founder Trustee of LCF said that the science of air quality and its direct link to health outcomes highlights the need for evidence-based, health-centred approaches to policy and urban planning.
Multi-Sectoral Panel Calls for Citizen Participation
The Forum also featured a multi-sectoral panel discussion by medical leaders, municipal health officials, environmental experts, and civil society representatives. The dialogue focused on policy imperatives, citizen participation, and sustainable pathways to cleaner air, reinforcing the need for coordinated action across sectors.
Dr. Varsha Puri Madan, Deputy Executive Health Officer of BMC said that environmental crisis should not become a blame game, and must instead begin with civic responsibility and strong intersectoral coordination across departments.
"Air pollution affects every part of the body, not just the lungs. This Forum marks a landmark movement that mobilises doctors who witness these health impacts first-hand, and I urge the medical community to actively engage in this collective effort," said Dr. Amita Nene, Senior Pulmonologist and Chairperson, Mumbai Forum for Clean Air.
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