World Air Quality Report 2022:
According to the World Air Quality Report prepared by IQAir, Delhi ranked 4th out of 50 of the world’s most polluted cities in terms of PM2.5 levels in 2022.
- Out of 131 countries, India ranked 8th with a population weighted average PM2.5 level of 53.3 μg/m3 in 2022.
Key Findings of the Report:
- IQAir, a Swiss air quality technology company, prepares the annual world air quality reports based on data from monitoring stations operated by governments and other institutions and organisations across the world.
- The 2022 report is based on PM2.5 data from 7,323 cities and 131 countries.
- Chad, Iraq, Pakistan, Bahrain, Bangladesh are the 5 most polluted countries in 2022.
- Delhi had an average PM2.5 level of 92.6 μg/m3 in 2022, a little below the average of 96.4 μg/m3 in 2021.
- The report makes a distinction between New Delhi and Delhi, with New Delhi having an annual average PM2.5 level of 89.1 μg/m3.
- The WHO guideline for annual PM2.5 levels is 5 μg/m3.
- Lahore was the most polluted city in the world, followed by Hotan in China, and Bhiwadi in Rajasthan.
- New Delhi is the second most polluted capital city in the world, with N’Djamena in Chad topping the list.
- A total of 39 Indian cities (including ‘Delhi’ and ‘New Delhi’) are on the list of 50 of the world’s most polluted cities based on annual average PM2.5 levels in 2022.
