2024 World Air Quality Report: India 5th most polluted country in world

India has been ranked as the 5th most polluted country in the world in 2024 by the 7th annual World Air Quality Report released by IQAir on 11 March 2025. The report which monitors the air pollution level  in the world based on the World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines also mentions India having 13 out of 20 most polluted cities in the world. 

Byrnihat in Meghalaya, situated along the border with Assam, has been declared the most polluted city in the world.

Who releases the Annual World Air Quality Report? 

The World Air Quality Report is released by Switzerland-based air quality technology company, IQAir. 

The first World Quality Report 2018 was released by IQAir in 2019. It uses the data from air quality monitoring stations across the world to create the annual report.

In the 2024 report, the IQAIr has used the air quality data of over 40,000 air quality monitoring stations in 8954 locations of 138 countries.

The report uses WHO air pollution guidelines on fine particulate matter (PM_2.5).

At present, WHO recommends that in a country, the annual average PM2.5 shall not be more than 5 µg/m3.

A country having more than the annual average of PM2.5 of 5 µg/m3 is considered polluted.

Status of Air Pollution in India 

• India was the 5th most polluted country in the world after Chad, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
• The average annual PM2.5 in India was 50.6 µg/m3. It is more than 10 times higher than the WHO  guideline. 
• There was a decline of 7% in the PM2.5 level as compared to last year (54.4µg/m3).
• New Delhi is the most polluted capital city in the world, with an average PM2.5 concentration of 91.8 μg/m³.
• Byrnihat in Meghalaya is the most polluted city in the world.
• Out of 20 most polluted cities in the world, 13 cities are in India.
• 35 % of Indian cities have recorded  10 times more annual average  PM 2.5 level than the prescribed WHO level.
• Air Pollution has reduced life expectancy in the country by an estimated 5.2 years.

Highlights of the 2024 Report

• The report ranks 138 countries.
• Only seven countries -Australia, the Bahamas, Barbados, Estonia, Grenada, Iceland, and New Zealand - met the WHO annual average PM2.5 guideline of 5 µg/m3.
• 17% of cities around the world meet WHO air pollution guidelines..
• Chad was the most polluted country in the world, with an average annual PM2.5 concentration of 91.8 µg/m3.
• Bangladesh was the second most polluted (78.0 µg/m3) followed by Pakistan (73.7 µg/m3), the Democratic Republic of Congo (58.2 µg/m3), and India  (50.6 µg/m3).
• Out of 138 countries monitored in the report,126 countries failed to meet the WHO criteria.
• Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, with an annual average PM2.5 concentration of 1.1 µg/m3, was the cleanest metropolitan area in the world.
• Oceania, with 57% of regional cities meeting the WHO PM2.5 annual guideline value of 5 µg/m3 is the world’s cleanest region.

Top 10 most polluted cities in the World in 2024

According to the 7th World Air Quality Report 2024, the following are the most polluted cities in the world.