Loni is India's most polluted city, dethroning Delhi
Loni, a city near Delhi, has just been named India's most polluted city for 2025 by IQAir's World Quality Report.
Its air quality hit a PM2.5 level of 112.5 ug/m3, higher than Delhi, Noida, and Ghaziabad.
Even though Delhi managed an 8% drop in its average pollution in 2025, it still saw a 44% surge in December; a 15% surge in April was driven by a massive dust storm.
Byrnihat, Kolkata and Mumbai follow Loni
Byrnihat came close behind with a PM2.5 level of 101.1 ug/m3, while Kolkata and Mumbai also faced poor air days.
On the national front, India saw only a slight improvement overall, a 3% decrease in average PM2.5 levels, amid persistent vehicular and industrial emissions, construction dust and seasonal crop residue burning, alongside structural enforcement and policy challenges.
NCAP faces challenges in improving air quality
The National Clean Air Program is trying to help but faces issues like uneven funding and weak enforcement of rules.
The report stresses that stronger action is needed if cities are going to see real change in their air quality soon.