NEW DELHI: According to the World Air Quality Report 2023 released by the Swiss organisation IQAir, Bihar’s Begusarai has been ranked as the most polluted metropolitan city in the world. The report also identified Delhi as the most polluted capital city while placing India in the third position for worst air quality among 134 countries in 2023.
Begusarai has an average PM 2.5 concentration of 118.9 micrograms per cubic meter- surpassing all other metropolitan areas this year, despite its absence from the previous year’s rankings. Delhi’s PM2.5 level worsened from 89.1 micrograms per cubic metre in 2022 to 92.7 micrograms per cubic metre in 2023.
The study looked specifically at PM2.5, which is the tiniest pollutant but also the most dangerous. Only nine per cent of more than 7,800 cities analysed globally recorded air quality that met WHO’s standard, which says average annual levels of PM2.5 should not exceed 5 micrograms per cubic meter.
Across India, approximately 96 per cent of the population lives with air quality seven times higher than WHO guidelines, according to the report.
Central and South Asia were the worst-performing regions globally, home to all four of the most polluted countries – Bangladesh, Pakistan, India, and Tajikistan.
South Asia is of particular concern, with 29 of the 30 most polluted cities in India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh.
IQAir found that only 10 countries and territories had “healthy” air quality: Finland, Estonia, Puerto Rico, Australia, New Zealand, Bermuda, Grenada, Iceland, Mauritius, and French Polynesia.