Despite its claims of progress and development, India has once again earned global notoriety for its worsening air pollution, ranking as the world’s fifth-most polluted country in 2024. Shockingly, 74 of the world's 100 most polluted cities are in India, including three of the top four, further exposing the grim reality behind the "Shining India" narrative.  The 2024 World Air Quality Report by IQAir, a Swiss air quality technology firm, has confirmed that fine particulate matter (PM2.5) levels in India exceed WHO’s annual guidelines by more than tenfold. 

Weighted by population, India’s average concentration of fine particulate matter, measured in micrograms per cubic meter (?g/m3), in 2024 was 50.6 – against the WHO’s recommended annual guideline level of 5 ?g/m3. Alarmingly, 35% of Indian cities recorded air pollution levels exceeding WHO limits by ten times or more, while not a single Indian city met the permissible air quality standards.  India has several other reasons for notoriety as far as air quality goes, per the report that was released on Tuesday.

A staggering 74 out of the world’s 100 most polluted cities are in India, including three of the top four. Meghalaya’s Byrnihat tops the list as the most polluted city globally, followed closely by the Indian capital Delhi, where PM2.5 levels surged by 6% compared to 2023.  These findings shatter India's development narrative, highlighting the stark gap between official rhetoric and the grim reality of millions forced to breathe toxic air daily.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan (INP)