Study finds India leads in richer and more polluted cities
A new study in Nature Cities found that India leads the world in cities that are both richer and more polluted.
Out of 390 such cities globally, 138 are in India, over a third of the total.
The research used satellite data to track nitrogen dioxide (NO2) pollution and compared it with economic growth from 2019 to 2024.
NO2 rose in 15% Indian cities
About 15% of Indian cities saw NO2 levels rise, mainly because of more cars on the road, busy factories, and coal power.
Big metros like Delhi and Mumbai have started cleaning up their act, but many smaller cities, like Nashik, are seeing air quality get worse as they develop fast.
Meanwhile, almost 80% of the studied cities with clear trends managed to get both cleaner and wealthier; China stood out for making big improvements with stricter rules and greener tech.