New Delhi is again the capital with world's worst air: Report

Larger city of 'Delhi' is named the world's 2nd worst city as per PM2.5 levels, finds report by IQAir; India has 6 of world's 10 most polluted cities

- Jasjeev Gandhiok and Leena Dhankhar

NEW DELHI: Delhi recorded the second-worst annual PM (particulate matter) 2.5 concentration of any city in the world in 2024 — more than 20 times the safe limit defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) — a study released on Tuesday revealed.

The World Air Quality Report 2024 by Swiss air quality technology firm IQAir, which made a distinction between the smaller "New Delhi", also found that the city's capital area had an average PM 2.5 level of 91.8 micrograms per cubic metre (µg/m3) — the eighth worst in the world, making it the world's most polluted capital.

WHO defines the safe standard for PM 2.5 concentration at 5µg/m3. India has set the "safe" level considerably higher — at 40µg/m3.

IQAir in its report found that six of the nine most polluted cities were in India, with Byrnihat on the Meghalaya-Assam border topping the list at 128.2 µg/m3.