Desert Dust Carries Disease-Causing Pathogens to Eastern Himalayas, Study Finds

Over more than two years of continuous monitoring, researchers tracked dust storms originating from the arid regions of western India.

A new scientific study has found that airborne pathogens hitchhiking on desert dust storms from western India are reaching the Eastern Himalayas, posing previously under-recognised risks to respiratory, skin and gastrointestinal health in high-altitude communities.

The research, conducted by scientists from the Bose Institute, an autonomous institute under the Department of Science and Technology (DST), fills a major knowledge gap on how long-range dust transport and local air pollution combine to affect human health in Himalayan regions.

Dust storms travelling hundreds of kilometres

Over more than two years of continuous monitoring, researchers tracked dust storms originating from the arid regions of western India. The study found that powerful dust plumes can travel hundreds of kilometres, crossing the densely populated and polluted Indo-Gangetic Plain before finally settling over Himalayan hilltops.

Far from being inert, these dust plumes carry airborne bacteria, including pathogens known to be associated with respiratory and skin diseases.

Mixing local and long-range pathogens at high altitude

The study also reveals a second, compounding mechanism. In addition to horizontally transported desert dust, vertical uplift of polluted air from the Himalayan foothills injects locally sourced airborne pathogens into the high-altitude atmosphere.

Once aloft, these local pathogens mix with long-range microbial travellers, reshaping the atmospheric bacterial community above the Himalayas. This combined process has been linked not only to respiratory and skin conditions, but also to gastrointestinal infections.

The Himalayan hill-top environment is often considered beneficial for health. However, researchers note that cold climatic conditions and hypoxia already increase human vulnerability, making populations more susceptible to airborne microbial exposure.

First quantitative evidence of its kind

Published in the international journal Science of the Total Environment, the study is the first to quantitatively demonstrate how:

• Long-range desert dust transport

• Vertical uplift of polluted foothill air

together alter the atmospheric bacterial ecosystem over the Eastern Himalayas, with direct implications for public health.

The findings provide rare microbiological evidence linking transboundary dust movement with disease risk in high-altitude regions — an area that has remained poorly understood until now.

Implications for health planning and forecasting

Researchers say the study offers critical insights for strengthening national health action plans and developing health forecast and early warning systems, particularly in the context of climate change and increasing extreme weather events.

The work aligns with India’s long-term development vision, including Viksit Bharat @ 2047, by highlighting the need to integrate environmental science, public health and atmospheric monitoring into policy planning.

As climate-driven dust storms intensify and air pollution persists, the study underscores that even remote, high-altitude regions like the Himalayas are not insulated from environmental health threats originating far beyond their borders.