Delhi overtakes Lahore as world's most polluted city as air quality drops
Delhi has become the world's most polluted city, with hazardous air quality levels recorded following the Deepavali festival. Discrepancies in data reporting and severe smog have raised concerns about public health and environmental monitoring accuracy.
Why it matters
The recurring air quality crisis in South Asia poses a severe public health threat to millions and highlights the challenges of environmental governance.
NEW DELHI India’s capital, Delhi, overtook Lahore in Pakistan to become the world’s most polluted city on Friday (November 13, 2026), with air quality reaching hazardous levels and visibility dropping as smog blanketed the city of 20 million people. https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Delhi/ Also Read: Delhi reels under ‘severe’ level air pollut https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Delhi/delhi-reel-under-severe-level-air-pollution/article71696499.ece Air quality index (AQI) in Delhi was “hazardous” at 334, making it the most polluted major city, according to Swiss group IQAir, which measures air quality levels based on the concentration of toxins At peak of air pollution on Deepavali, data goes missing at several government monitoring stations in Delhi At peak of air pollution on Deepavali, data goes missing at several government monitoring stations in Delhi Missing PM2.5 data for several hours on CPCB website understated city’s pollution levels: experts; 227 PM2.5 observations were missing across 59 stations; govt.
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