Dhaka's traffic police are on the front lines of air pollution. Are they okay?

Md Emaroz Hossain, a DMP traffic policeman, works eight hours a day on the road. 

In February, he went to a pharmacy and got some antibiotics for a severe case of coughing.  After a few days, the coughing abated. The medication seemed to have resolved the issue then. 

But in March, the coughing resurfaced and persisted for days. This time with pain in the stomach. So Emaroz went to Central Police Hospital to see a doctor. 

"The doctor prescribed some tests and medicine and advised me to use a mask all the time at work," said a 45-year-old Emaroz. But "wearing a mask for a long time is not possible since there's a scorching sun overhead and the dust makes it feel irritating," he added. 

Emaroz is not alone. Dhaka's air has been sending many more traffic policemen to the hospital. "In the last three months, we have observed a significant number of traffic police officers presenting various respiratory issues," said Dr Farhana Sayeed, a medicine consultant at the Central Police Hospital.  

Although she was unable to provide an exact count, she estimated the daily number of patients who come to the medicine outdoors at Central Police Hospital at 500. "Out of which, 50% are presenting respiratory problems — and 10-15% of these patients are traffic police," said Dr Farhana. 

This was not the case even last year. The numbers were much lower. 

Patients are generally given CBC, ESR, CRP (blood tests) and chest x-ray. These tests may cost around  Tk1,000-2,000. In case the coughing is severe, the patient is also recommended a cough test and tuberculosis test, according to Dr Farhana. 

How bad is Dhaka's air?

Dhaka recently ranked as the second worst among capital cities worldwide, with an annual average PM2.5 (fine particulate matter) concentration of 80.2 µg/m³, just behind New Delhi. 

PM2.5 at or below 12 µg/m³ is considered safe with little to no risk from exposure, according to WHO. Today (1 April), even after a couple of days of rain, Dhaka's PM2.5 concentration stands at 56µg/m³ – 11.2 times the WHO annual air quality guideline value.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh topped the list of countries and territories in 2023 with an annual average PM2.5 concentration of 79.9 µg/m³. 

While every commuter, especially those who rely on public transport in Dhaka, suffers the consequences of air pollution, the traffic police are in a league of their own. 

Stationed on the city's chaotic roads, the traffic police face a particularly harsh reality for extended periods of time daily. Dhaka's polluted air – primarily made up of black smoke from vehicles and dust from road construction work – makes the traffic police unwitting sentinels exposed to thick harmful pollutants.

Dhaka's annual average PM2.5 concentration sits well above safe limits. This translates to traffic police inhaling a potent cocktail of pollutants like nitrogen dioxide and ozone, known to irritate the lungs and exacerbate existing respiratory conditions.

"Surprisingly, we are also witnessing a notable increase in tuberculosis cases, a trend we hadn't seen previously," said Dr Farhana, the medicine consultant at Central Police Hospital.

She highlighted that February marked the peak month for traffic police officers seeking medical attention for symptoms such as coughing, respiratory tract problems, and lung issues. These conditions have become severe enough to necessitate the use of inhalers.

"We've even encountered cases of asthma in individuals with no prior family history of respiratory conditions, potentially attributed to air pollution," said Dr Farhana, who also practices medicine in two private hospitals. 

Due to their recurring health issues, traffic policemen resort to antibiotics and high doses of steroids, leading to a decline in their immunity. "Frequent antibiotic use has resulted in some cases of antibiotic resistance," explained the medicine specialist. 

Some officers also complain of abdominal pain. Additionally, the use of steroids and antibiotics has led to complications in managing diabetes and skin problems.

Another traffic policeman and a Jatrabari resident, requesting anonymity, told TBS that because of the dusty air he, along with two family members, had to see a doctor recently. "Jatrabari area is an area with serious air problems," complained the policeman. 

Previously, family members of officers did not visit the hospital as frequently as they do now (averaging four to five visits a year), said Dr Farhana. "Although we provide treatments for pneumonia and influenza; we are struggling to curb the rising tide of illnesses."

Raising the alarm

A study published in October 2023 in the Asian Journal of Research in Infectious Diseases says that air pollution from car exhaust has a negative impact on health. People who are constantly exposed to car pollution can develop various health problems including respiratory diseases, especially lung dysfunctions.

Earlier, many other studies have repeatedly highlighted the detrimental effects of air pollution. 

A 2018 research paper published in the journal Environmental Pollution found a significant association between long-term exposure to PM2.5 and an increased risk of cardiovascular disease and respiratory problems. Another study, published in Occupational and Environmental Medicine in 2015, specifically linked traffic police duty with a higher prevalence of respiratory issues like asthma and bronchitis.

A study published in 2022 titled Respiratory Symptoms among Urban Traffic Policemen in Bangladesh also cited the same issues – showing that air pollution from vehicles is the main source of pollution in the capital city of Bangladesh. Road traffic has the potential to significantly increase emissions of pollutants such as carbon monoxide, oxides of nitrogen, particulate matter and hydrocarbons. 

This study determined the frequency of chronic respiratory illnesses and their related factors among traffic police in Dhaka, by studying a total of 384 traffic policemen in different traffic zones of Dhaka city.

According to the study, most of the respondents (84.4%) had respiratory problems and among them, cough problems are most common (31.2%) followed by phlegm problems (27.6%), whistling problems (15.4%) when getting cold, and breathlessness when walking (4.4%). 

About 3.1% were suffering from asthma and among them, 2.1% had been suffering from asthma for less than 15 years. About 9.1% of cases there had a history of parental lung diseases, and lung cancer is the most common (1.3%). 

The situation has turned so bad that "residents of Dhaka are exposed to air pollution equivalent to smoking up to three cigarettes each day, regardless of age or health condition," Dr Wameq Raza, Senior Health Specialist at World Bank, told TBS in an earlier report. 

One can imagine how bad things are for Dhaka's traffic police then.

"This is indeed a difficult situation. While we encourage traffic policemen to prioritise safety by using masks and taking precautions, the reality is harsh. With the surge in car numbers, they work under increasingly difficult conditions," said Munibur Rahman, Additional Police Commissioner (Traffic), DMP.

He mentioned that the efforts are underway to address this issue. "We're engaged in discussions with the Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change, who are actively seeking to curtail the situation and conducting workshops and awareness campaigns. Finding a solution will be a gradual process requiring collective effort. However, in the meantime, avoiding this is difficult," he added.

A TBS story on 23 March on the deplorable state of Dhaka's air pointed out the authorities had received a whopping $2.3 billion in international funds between 2017 and 2021 to counter air pollution, according to The State of Global Air Quality Funding 2023. What exactly are they doing then?

Md Ziaul Haque, the Director of the Air Quality Control Unit at the Department of Environment (DoE), told The Business Standard in the earlier report that to combat air pollution effectively, all entities must collaborate and pointed to the difficulty in coordinating these entities to take simultaneous actions. 

He emphasised that the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) has a crucial role to play in addressing air pollution. "Since vehicle emissions are a significant concern, BRTA must certify vehicles for fitness after emission testing," he said.