India’s deteriorating air quality has been grabbing headlines. According to the AQLI, India’s average citizen would live 4.3 years longer if India’s air quality were to meet the World Health Organization’s guideline for fine particulate pollution.

Growing concerns about the impact of polluted air on human health were recently echoed in the Indian Parliament by Rajya Sabha MP Vandana Chavan. In her speech, she mentioned the AQLI’s findings as proof of how much of an impact India’s pollution is having on people’s lives. She demanded that India’s air pollution laws prioritize the health and productivity of citizens, and called for an amendment to the Indian Air Act. She cited that protecting health is the principal objective in the laws of nearly all nations that have successfully combated air pollution.