Thirteen of the dirtiest 20 cities worldwide are in India, with New Delhi holding the undesirable title of the world’s most polluted city, according to the most recent data from the World Health Organization (WHO). Prime Minister Narendra Modi acknowledged this much this week, and even urged his countrymen to change their lifestyle in order to help protect the environment. He spoke as India’s first national air quality index was launched as part of his Clean India Mission. The index tracks eight pollutants and will use color coding to describe associated health impacts. We can only hope this is just the beginning of a new public conversation in India, where over 600,000 people die every year because of air pollution, according to the WHO.
India’s Prime Minister launches first national air pollution index
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