New Delhi: As concerns about air pollution intensify in the national capital, severe air quality issues are significantly disrupting the daily lives of millions, have led to school closures, and have prompted governments to advise people to stay indoors to prevent health issues. A recent study reveals that Mumbai and Kolkata have now joined Delhi in the list of the top ten most polluted cities.
The national capital tops the list as the most polluted city. Delhi has seen a poor AQI figure since the beginning of November. The Swiss group IQAir has put Delhi’s air in the “hazardous” category. Kolkata takes the fifth spot, and India’s financial capital Mumbai ranks sixth in the world’s 10 most polluted cities.
The air quality in northern India experiences an annual decline as winter approaches, marked by the entrapment of pollutants from various sources such as vehicles, industrial activities, construction dust, and the burning of agricultural waste.
Meanwhile, South Asia now stands as a concerning epicentre for air pollution on a global scale, as four nations from this region claim spots among the world’s most polluted, and nine out of the top 10 polluted cities worldwide are situated in South Asia.