Delhi slips to sixth, but which city tops India’s pollution chart in October? Dharuhera in Haryana leads with soaring PM2.5 levels. What’s causing this surge, and how bad is air quality across the NCR? Find out before you step outside.
Sharp decline in air quality across India
New Delhi: A recent air quality report has revealed a sharp decline in air quality across India, with Haryana’s Dharuhera emerging as the most polluted city in October, while Delhi slipped to the sixth spot. The findings come from the Monthly Air Quality Snapshot released by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), based on data from Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Stations (CAAQMS).
In October, Delhi recorded an average PM2.5 concentration of 107 µg/m³, a steep rise compared to September’s 36 µg/m³. Despite public attention on seasonal stubble burning, CREA noted that such activities contributed less than 6 percent to Delhi’s pollution levels in October.
The report emphasizes that the surge reflects year-round emissions and underscores the need for long-term solutions beyond seasonal measures, such as the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP).
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Haryana cities dominated the top ranks of polluted cities. Dharuhera, in Rewari district, recorded a monthly average PM2.5 concentration of 123 µg/m³, exceeding the National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) on 77 percent of days. The city experienced two ‘Severe’ pollution days and nine ‘Very Poor’ days.
Other cities in the top five included Rohtak, Ghaziabad, Noida, and Ballabgarh, reflecting the persistent environmental challenges in the National Capital Region (NCR). Overall, four cities each from Haryana and Uttar Pradesh featured in the top 10 most polluted cities, indicating that the NCR continues to face critical air quality issues.
At the opposite end of the spectrum, Shillong in Meghalaya emerged as the cleanest city, with an average PM2.5 concentration of just 10 µg/m³. The top 10 cleanest cities also included regions from Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Sikkim, and Chhattisgarh, showcasing a stark contrast in air quality across India.
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The report also highlighted a sharp shift in air quality categories in October. Cities classified as ‘Good’ (0–30 µg/m³) fell from 179 in September to 68, while those in the ‘Satisfactory’ range (31–60 µg/m³) increased from 52 to 144. Cities in the ‘Moderate’ bracket (61–90 µg/m³) rose from 4 to 27, nine cities moved into the ‘Poor’ category (91–120 µg/m³), and one city entered the ‘Very Poor’ range (121–250 µg/m³).
With air quality deteriorating across the NCR and other regions, experts stress the need for sustainable pollution control measures, stronger monitoring, and public awareness to curb the rising health risks associated with air pollution.
