Byrnihat of Meghalaya became India’s Most Polluted City in 2023 in a report released on January 10.
According to the think tank Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), Byrnihat in Meghalaya topped the list of the most polluted cities in India in 2023.
Byrnihat, recorded the highest annual average PM10 concentration at 301 micrograms per cubic meter.
Begusarai in Bihar (average annual PM10 level 265 micrograms per cubic metre) and Greater Noida in Uttar Pradesh (228 micrograms per cubic metre) took the second and third positions among the most polluted cities.
Delhi, which is known for persistently high air pollution levels during winter, ranked as the eighth most polluted city.
However, Silchar in Assam recorded the lowest PM10 level of 29 micrograms per cubic meter in 2023.
Of the top 50 polluted cities, 18 are from Bihar, eight from Haryana, and eight from Rajasthan.
227 cities have been studied with air quality data available for more than 75 percent of the days in 2023.
Of these cities, 85 were included under the National Clean Air Program (NCAP).
The data showed that PM10 levels exceeded the NAAQS (60 micrograms per cubic metre) in 78 of the 85 NCAP cities.
Launched in 2019, NCAP aims to reduce PM2.5 and PM10 concentration by 20-30% by 2024 in 131 cities that did not meet air quality standards set between 2011 to 2015.
The government has now set a new target of reducing particulate matter concentrations in these cities by 40% by 2026.
