Most Polluted Cities in India

Brief

Indian urban development is growing at a fast pace and with it, pollution is skyrocketed as well. Most polluted cities in the world, including 14 in the top 15, are in India. An air quality report released by a Swiss organisation, IQAir said. This includes the second most polluted city, Ghaziabad in the national capital region.

Source: Deccan Herald

The report, released globally on (16th March, 2021) , said that while India saw “marked improvement” in air quality last year. On account of the Covid-19 pandemic and the restrictions imposed on account of it, the levels of pollution were still “dangerously high”.

Source: Hindustan Times

Recent Updates on Polluted Cities

“Every city in India observed air quality improvements compared to 2018, while 63% saw direct improvements against 2019. However, India continues to feature prominently at the top of the most polluted cities. Ranking with 22 of the top 30 most polluted cities globally,” the report said.

While the focus of the governments in tackling the problem of air pollution in India is largely focused around the national capital, Delhi, high concentrations of PM 2.5 (ultrafine particulate matter with diameter less than 2.5 micrometres) are recorded in the entire Indo-Gangetic Plains (IGP) , especially during the winter season. That’s when levels of PM 2.5 from local sources such as vehicles, industrial emissions, construction and open burning are complemented by external contributors such as stubble burning and the unfavourable weather conditions, leading to the accumulation of pollutants closer to the surface.

Most Polluted Cities

1. Ghaziabad:

Uttar Pradesh’s Ghaziabad has been ranked second after Hotan city from China which is the most polluted city in the world. Ghaziabad comes as the most polluted city across India. The city has been constantly reflecting in the top charts for polluted cities. Ghaziabad in 2019, had 110.2 µg/m³ on PM 2.5. In 2018, it was 135.2 µg/m³ and it was the highest in 2017 with 144.6 µg/m³. For 2020, Ghaziabad’s average was 106.6 µg/m³. The reasons behind Ghaziabad’s extremely high levels of pollution are twofold, with vehicles and industry playing one large role.

2. Bulandshahr:

The second most polluted city is Bulandshahr from Uttar Pradesh. The average PM 2.5 for the year 2020 was 98.4The average PM 2.5 for the year 2019 was 89.4 in Bulandshahr. The AQI stands at the hazardous range and is 316. PM 10 stands as the most hazardous pollutant in the city. The S02 is 32.8 µg/m³.

3. Bisrakh Jalalpur:

The third most polluted city in India is Bisrakh Jalalpur. Bisrakh is 10 km away from the city of Greater Noida. The average PM 2.5 for Bisrakh Jalalpur is 96 for the year 2020.The current PM 10 is 448 µg/m³, PM 2.5 is 92 µg/m³, O3 is 176 µg/m³.Other pollutants such as O3 stands at 176 µg/m³, NO2 at 48 µg/m³. 

4. Bhiwandi:

Maharashtra’s Bhiwandi takes the fourth spot in the most polluted cities across India. Bhiwandi is located 20 km northeast of Mumbai and 15 km northeast of Thane city.  The city is home to several small scale industries and the textile hub of Maharashtra. The AQI stand at 157 and it is unhealthy. The main pollutant is PM 2.5. The average PM 2.5 for the year 2020 was 95.5 µg/m³. It was 125.4 µg/m³ in the year 2018 and was 83.4 µg/m³ in 2019.

5. Noida:

Uttar Pradesh’s Noida comes at the fifth spot in the most polluted cities in India. The average PM2.5 for the year 2020 was 94.3 µg/m³. It was 134 µg/m³ in 2017, 123.6 µg/m³ in 2018 and 97.7 µg/m³ in 2019. Air quality in Noida is worse than in Beijing. The AQI is 117. The pollution in Noida comes from industrial and vehicular emissions, waste burning and dust. The worst period for the air quality takes place in October and November usually for different reasons.