Gujarat rapid growth in vehicle ownership is adding to the air pollution challenge in its major cities, where annual PM10 concentrations remain significantly above the national standard despite improvements over the past decade.
Ahmedabad, Surat, Rajkot and Vadodara are among the Gujarat cities covered under India’s National Clean Air Programme (NCAP). Data available on the Central Pollution Control Board’s PRANA portal show that annual average PM10 levels in all four cities remained above the national standard of 60 micrograms per cubic metre in 2025-26.
Ahmedabad recorded the highest annual average PM10 concentration at around 100 micrograms per cubic metre, followed by Rajkot and Vadodara at about 98 micrograms per cubic metre each. Surat recorded around 86 micrograms per cubic metre.
Although pollution levels have declined from their 2017-18 levels, the reductions have not been sufficient to bring the cities within the national standard.
In Ahmedabad, PM10 declined from around 162 micrograms per cubic metre in 2017-18 to about 100 micrograms per cubic metre in 2025-26. Surat recorded a decline from around 130 to 86 micrograms per cubic metre during the same period. Rajkot fell from about 149 to 98 micrograms per cubic metre, while Vadodara declined from around 150 to 98 micrograms per cubic metre.
The continued high levels point to the difficulty of reducing pollution in cities where vehicle numbers, construction activity, road dust and fossil fuel consumption remain significant sources of emissions.
Transport remains a major pollution source
Vehicular emissions are among the important contributors to air pollution in Gujarat’s urban centres.
An official study of Ahmedabad estimated that transport accounted for about 27 per cent of PM2.5 pollution and around 20 per cent of PM10 pollution.
A 2024 study examining air quality across industrial, urban and rural areas of Ahmedabad also identified vehicle emissions and construction activity as major contributors to pollution in urban areas. Fossil fuel combustion from automobiles was identified as a major source of nitrogen dioxide emissions.
Transport is also becoming increasingly important from a climate perspective. According to the Gujarat Climate Action Tracker, road transport accounted for about 13 per cent of the state’s carbon dioxide emissions in 2023. Industrial energy consumption and public power generation accounted for larger shares.
The contribution of road transport was considerably higher in some major districts. Vehicles accounted for around 36 per cent of carbon dioxide emissions in Ahmedabad and 52 per cent in Rajkot. The transport sector contributed about 23 per cent in Vadodara and 13.5 per cent in Surat.
State level road transport emissions have risen sharply, increasing from around 6.7 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2005 to 32.2 million tonnes in 2023.
The number of vehicles being added to Gujarat’s roads has increased steadily.
According to VAHAN data, around 15.69 lakh new vehicles were registered in Gujarat in 2022. The number rose to 18.22 lakh in 2023, 18.99 lakh in 2024 and 20.90 lakh in 2025 an increase of roughly one third over four years.
The state now has around 2.93 crore registered vehicles.
Petrol and diesel continue to dominate the vehicle fleet. More than 2.08 crore registered vehicles are petrol-powered, while around 43.3 lakh are diesel vehicles. Together, the two categories account for more than 2.51 crore vehicles.
Gujarat also has around 18.47 lakh petrol CNG vehicles.
The concentration of vehicles is particularly high in major urban centres. Surat’s RTO has around 34.02 lakh registered vehicles, followed by Ahmedabad with about 30.42 lakh, Rajkot with 20.72 lakh, Vadodara with 20.61 lakh and Ahmedabad East with around 13.4 lakh.
Together, these five RTOs account for nearly 1.19 crore vehicles.
The growing number of vehicles would be less concerning if the transition towards cleaner fuels were rapid. However, Gujarat remains heavily dependent on conventional fuels.
Around 15 per cent of the state’s registered vehicles run on diesel. Approximately 4.33 million diesel vehicles were registered in Gujarat as of August 13, 2026.
New diesel registrations also increased from 1.88 lakh in 2022 to 2.57 lakh in 2025.
Petrol powered vehicles account for an even larger share. When petrol, petrol E20, petrol CNG and petrol hybrid categories are considered together, new petrol powered vehicle registrations increased from around 12.58 lakh in 2022 to 16.51 lakh in 2025. They accounted for roughly 79 per cent of all new vehicle registrations in 2025.
Diesel vehicles are particularly important from an air pollution perspective. An analysis by the Centre for Science and Environment has estimated that diesel contributes about 74 per cent of PM2.5 emissions from road transport in India and around 70 per cent of nitrogen oxide emissions.
CNG growth has not solved the problem
CNG has expanded in Gujarat, but its share of the overall vehicle fleet remains relatively small.
The state has around 23.69 lakh CNG vehicles, equivalent to about 8.1 per cent of its total registered vehicle fleet.
New CNG registrations increased from 1.32 lakh in 2022 to 2.49 lakh in 2025. Their share of new vehicle registrations rose from 8.4 per cent to 11.9 per cent over the same period.
Around 1.70 lakh CNG vehicles had been registered during 2026 by the time of the data cited.
However, the growth of CNG has not translated into a clear reversal of long-term particulate pollution trends. A 2022 study examining PM2.5 concentrations in Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Surat and Vadodara found that annual average PM2.5 levels increased in all four cities between 1998 and 2020.
Surat recorded the largest increase, from 26 to 41.2 micrograms per cubic metre, a rise of about 59 per cent. Rajkot recorded a 40 per cent increase, while Vadodara and Ahmedabad saw increases of around 37 per cent and 23 per cent, respectively.
Enforcement remains a major weakness
The challenge is not only the growing number of vehicles. Enforcement of pollution control requirements has also come under scrutiny.
A Comptroller and Auditor General of India report released in March 2026 raised concerns over the functioning of Gujarat’s Transport Department.
The CAG found that 39,12,554 vehicles had pollution under control (PUC) certificates that had expired by December 31, 2023 and had not been renewed. It also found that 69,26,536 vehicles registered between 2009 and 2019 had not renewed their PUC certificates even once during the five year period examined.
The audit further found that 1,95,209 vehicles were issued fitness certificates without valid PUC certificates.
The CAG termed this evidence of poor regulatory compliance and inadequate oversight. It noted that ensuring vehicles have valid PUC certificates is an important responsibility of the Transport Department in controlling vehicular emissions.
The department cited an e-detection system intended to improve enforcement, but the CAG found that it was not functioning effectively during the audit period.
Gujarat has made progress in reducing PM10 levels since 2017-18, but the latest figures show that its major cities remain well above the national standard.
The combination of rapidly rising vehicle ownership, continued dependence on petrol and diesel, increasing transport related emissions and weaknesses in PUC enforcement makes vehicle pollution a growing challenge for the state.
Reducing emissions will therefore require more than adding cleaner fuel vehicles. Stronger inspection and enforcement, better public transport, effective traffic management, greater adoption of zero and low emission mobility and sustained action against road dust and construction pollution will be crucial if Ahmedabad, Surat, Rajkot and Vadodara are to meet clean air targets.