Air Quality Life Index (AQLI) 2025

General Studies Paper-3

Context

• According to the Air Quality Life Index, India is the second most polluted country in the world.

The Air Quality Life Index (AQLI)

• The Air Quality Life Index (AQLI) is developed by Professor Michael Greenstone and the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago (EPIC).
• It translates air pollution levels into their impact on life expectancy, offering hyper-local data to help users see how much longer people could live if pollution met various standards.
• It supports EPIC’s Clean Air Program, which aims to inform policy and public action with high-quality pollution data.

Key Findings of recent report

• South Asia, including Bangladesh, India, Nepal, and Pakistan, remains the most polluted region.
• Bangladesh is the worst globally, with air 12 times dirtier than WHO limits.
• China, though still above WHO limits, has cut its pollution by 40.8% since 2014 through aggressive policies, including traffic restrictions, cleaner heating, and reduced coal use.
• North America saw major pollution spikes in 2023 due to wildfires, and Bolivia became the most polluted Latin American country.
• In Africa, pollution now poses a greater life expectancy threat than HIV/AIDS or malaria in countries like Cameroon and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Status In India

• Air pollution is India’s most severe health threat, reducing average life expectancy by 3.5 years — nearly twice the impact of malnutrition and over five times that of unsafe water and sanitation.
• All 1.4 billion Indians live in areas exceeding the WHO’s safe PM2.5 limit (5 µg/m³).
• The worst-hit region is Northern India, especially Delhi-NCR, where residents could lose up to 8.2 years of life.
• Other states like Bihar (5.6 years), Haryana (5.3 years), and Uttar Pradesh (5 years) also show severe losses.
• 46% of Indians live in areas that exceed even India’s own weaker PM2.5 limit of 40 µg/m³.

Suggestions

• The AQLI 2025 highlights the urgent need for strong, evidence-based policies to combat air pollution .
• It stresses that cleaning the air is vital not just for the environment, but for extending human life.
• The report calls for expanding clean energy, stricter emission norms, and investment in green infrastructure, while promoting public awareness and policy action to address this growing health crisis.