India continues to battle severe air pollution, with five of the world’s 10 most polluted cities located in the country, according to the latest 2025 World Air Quality Report by IQAir. The report flags alarmingly high levels of fine particulate matter (PM2.5), far exceeding global safety norms.
Loni in Uttar Pradesh has emerged as the world’s most polluted city, recording PM2.5 levels of 112.5 micrograms per cubic metre—nearly 22 times higher than the safe limit prescribed by the World Health Organization.
Other Indian cities in the global top 10 include:
Byrnihat in Meghalaya (rank 3, 101.1)
Delhi (rank 4, 99.6)
Ghaziabad (rank 5, 89.2)
Ula (Birnagar) in West Bengal (rank 10, 86.8)
China’s Hotan occupies the second position, while four cities in Pakistan also feature in the top 10 list.
The report analyses PM2.5 data from 9,446 cities across 143 countries, drawing from over 40,000 monitoring stations and sensors. Data sources include government agencies, academic institutions, private firms and citizen-led monitoring networks.
Key global findings underline the scale of the crisis:
Just 14 percent of cities worldwide met the WHO’s annual PM2.5 guideline in 2025, down from 17 percent a year earlier
Only 13 countries complied with the WHO standard, including Australia, Iceland and Estonia
Around 91 percent of countries exceeded safe pollution limits
Pakistan ranked as the world’s most polluted country in 2025, with PM2.5 levels averaging 67.3 micrograms per cubic metre—about 13 times higher than WHO recommendations. Bangladesh, Tajikistan, Chad and the Democratic Republic of the Congo follow on the list.
The findings highlight a worsening air quality crisis across South Asia, with India facing mounting public health and policy challenges as pollution levels remain persistently high.