Passage

Cooking with biomass and coal in India is now recognized to cause major health problems, with women and children in poor populations facing the greatest risk. There are more than 10 lakh premature deaths each year from household air pollution due to polluting cooking fuels with another 1.5 lakh due to their contribution to general outdoor air pollution in the country. Although the fraction of the Indian population using clean cooking fuels, such as LPG, natural gas and electricity, is slowly rising, the number using polluting solid fuels as their primary cooking fuel has remained static for nearly 30 years at about 70 crore.

QUESTION

CSAT

Medium

Comprehension

Prelims 2018

Which of the following is the most crucial and logical inference that can be made from the above passage?

Select an option to attempt

Explanation

Option A is incorrect. The passage does not indicate that rural people are giving up the use of polluting solid fuels due to increasing awareness. It states that the fraction of people using clean cooking fuels is slowly rising, but it does not suggest that awareness is the primary driver for the shift.

Option B is incorrect. While subsidizing clean cooking fuels could help, the passage does not claim that this alone would solve the problem of indoor air pollution. The issue is more complex and involves access, affordability, and the use of cleaner alternatives.

Option C is incorrect. The passage does not mention anything about importing more natural gas or producing more electricity to address the issue. The focus is on the use of cleaner cooking fuels and their effects on health.

Option D is correct. The passage implies that using clean cooking fuels such as LPG, natural gas, and electricity can reduce the health risks associated with polluting cooking fuels, thus potentially lowering the premature deaths caused by household air pollution.

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