Gurugram has been ranked the second most polluted city in India in 2024-25, with 156 days of bad air quality, according to data shared in the Lok Sabha. This includes 132 days of ‘poor’ air quality and 24 days of ‘very poor’ air quality.
Only Byrnihat in Assam had more polluted days, recording 164 days in total. Patna matched Gurugram for the highest number of ‘poor’ days (132), but had fewer ‘very poor’ days.
The data comes from the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP), compiled by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
What the Numbers Mean
•Poor AQI (201–300): Can cause breathing discomfort, especially with long exposure.
•Very Poor AQI (301–400): Can lead to respiratory illness after extended exposure.
In Haryana, Charkhi Dadri was the next worst-hit with 99 polluted days, followed by Faridabad (98 days) and Rohtak (80 days). Nearby, Baddi in Himachal Pradesh recorded 88 polluted days, while Chandigarh had 73.
Some Progress, but Problems Remain
Environment Minister Kirti Vardhan Singh said 103 out of 130 NCAP cities have cut PM10 pollution since 2017-18, with 64 cities reducing it by over 20% and 25 cities achieving over 40% reduction.
Faridabad, for example, saw a 35.8% drop in PM10 levels, falling from 229 µg/m³ in 2020-21 to 147 µg/m³ in 2024-25.
However, 23 cities saw no improvement, including Chandigarh and Derabassi. In Chandigarh, PM10 levels stayed at 114 µg/m³ from 2017-18 to 2024-25, while Derabassi’s levels rose from 88 to 98 µg/m³.
Funding for Clean Air
Since its launch in 2019, NCAP has provided ₹13,036 crore in grants to 130 cities. Haryana received ₹107.14 crore, Punjab ₹325.77 crore, and Himachal Pradesh ₹20.18 crore for pollution control efforts.