India 3rd worst in air quality, Delhi most polluted capital in world
Meanwhile, Begusarai stood out as the most polluted metropolitan area globally
A new report has come out which identified Delhi as the world’s most polluted capital because of its extremely poor air quality compared to other capital cities. Delhi’s PM2.5 levels worsened from 89.1 micrograms per cubic metre in 2022 to 92.7 micrograms per cubic metre in 2023 and has been voted as the capital with the worst air quality ever since 2018.
The report also stated that with an average annual PM2.5 concentration of 54.4 micrograms per cubic metre, India had the third-worst air quality out of 134 countries in 2023 after Bangladesh and Pakistan. Earlier India was ranked eighth most polluted country in 2022 with a PM2.5 concentration of 53.3 micrograms per cubic metre.
Meanwhile, Begusarai, which did not even appear in the 2022 rankings, stood out as the most polluted metropolitan area globally with an average PM2.5 concentration of 118.9 micrograms per cubic metre in 2023.
According to the report, it is estimated that almost 1.3 billion people experience PM2.5 levels which are higher than the WHO Pm2.5 guidelines. This is reflected in city-level data which shows that more than 66% of the country’s cities reported annual averages greater than 35 micrograms per cubic metre.
IQAir, which made the Air Quality Report 2023 said the data utilised to create this report was aggregated from the global distribution of more than 30,000 regulatory air quality monitoring stations and low-cost air quality sensors operated by research institutions, governmental bodies, universities and educational facilities, non-profit non-governmental organisations, private companies and citizen scientists. They have used data from 7,812 locations from 134 countries, regions and territories to make this report.
According to the WHO, air pollution is responsible for an estimated seven million premature deaths worldwide every year. This means that air pollution has caused at lease one in every nine deaths and is one of the biggest threats to humans all around the world. It is also known that exposure to elevated levels of fine particles can impair cognitive development in children, lead to mental health issues, and complicate existing illnesses, including diabetes.
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