Pakistan Tops Global Pollution List: India Ranks Sixth

IQAir World Air Quality Report 2025, published on March 24, 2026, ranks Pakistan as the most polluted country in the world in terms of PM 2.5 and India comes number six with regional challenges in mind. 

Using more than 40,000 monitoring sites in 9,446 cities of 143 countries, the key measure in this annual evaluation is fine particulate matter (PM2.5), because it has profound penetration into the lungs and blood vessels.

Where Does Pakistan Stand in Key Country Rankings?

Pakistan has registered the maximum average concentration of PM2.5 at 67.3 ug/m3/year, which is way above the WHO limit of 5 ug/m3- 13 times more than the safe limit. Pakistan (67.3 ug/m3), Bangladesh (66.1 ug/m3), Tajikistan (57.3 ug/m3), Chad (53.6 ug/m3) and the Democratic Republic of the Congo are the five most polluted countries.

India has the sixth place with 48.9 ug/m3 of PM2.5 which is marginally better than 50.6 ug/m3 in 2024 but still almost 10 times worse than the WHO standard. 

Conversely, cleaner countries such as the US (120 th) and UK (110 th) enjoy stringent laws and reduced emissions of industries.

Worst Polluted Cities

The city of Loni in Uttar Pradesh, India leads the world in the most polluted city with 112.5 ug/m3 PM2.5, which is 22 times WHO limits and 23 percent higher than in 2024. Other leading international hotspots are Hotan (China) and Byrnihat (Meghalaya, India) with Delhi at number four; India, Pakistan and China take over the top 25 dirty cities.

The best air in South Africa was in Nieuwoudtville with a reading of 1.0 ug/m3. Such NCR cities as Ghaziabad (where the user is located) also present one of the leading positions in the polluted list in India which highlights the urgency at the local level.

It was only 13 countries that passed WHO criteria, marginally better than in 2024, yet Asia and Africa are ranked the most dismal.

What is the Situation in India?

The minor decrease in PM2.5 in India is because of attempts such as the National Clean Air Programme, but its hot spots are in urban areas, and caused by vehicles, stubble burning and industry. 

Policymakers recommend closer surveillance, sustainable change, and implementation to fit into the WHO objectives, which is crucial to the health of the populated regions such as Ghaziabad.