City in Assam tops list of world's most polluted cities
What's the story
A report by Swiss air quality technology company IQAir has branded Byrnihat in Assam as the world's most polluted city.
Overall, the World Air Quality Report 2024 ranked India as the fifth most polluted country.
India also continues to have high levels of particulate matter (PM2.5), especially in its cities.
According to the report, PM2.5 concentrations in India fell by 7% in 2024, averaging 50.6 micrograms per cubic meter, down from 54.4 micrograms per cubic meter in 2023.
Capital rankings
Delhi remains world's most polluted capital city
The report names Delhi as the world's most polluted capital city.
The Indian capital had an annual average PM2.5 concentration of 91.6 micrograms per cubic meter, almost unchanged from 92.7 micrograms per cubic meter in 2023.
The report names 13 of the world's top 20 most polluted cities in India, including Byrnihat, Delhi, Mullanpur (Punjab), Faridabad, Loni, New Delhi, Gurugram, Ganganagar, Greater Noida, Bhiwadi, Muzaffarnagar, Hanumangarh, and Noida.
Health impact
Air pollution significantly impacts health and life expectancy
In all, 35% of Indian cities reported yearly PM2.5 levels greater than 10 times the WHO limit of 5 micrograms per cubic meter.
Air pollution remains one of the biggest health threats in India, with estimated life expectancy reduced by 5.2 years.
A study published last year in Lancet Planetary Health attributed about 1.5 million deaths annually from 2009 to 2019 to long-term exposure to PM2.5 pollution.
Urgent measures
Call for action to combat air pollution
The tiny air particles, which can enter the lungs and bloodstream, cause breathing problems, heart disease, and even cancer from sources including vehicle exhaust, industrial emissions, and the burning of wood or crop waste.
Former WHO chief scientist Soumya Swaminathan stressed the need to act on the data collected.
She said replacing biomass with LPG was an easy solution, and more subsidies for additional cylinders were needed.
"We have the data; now we need action," she told PTI.