Not Mumbai, Delhi Or Bengaluru, This Indian City Ranked India's Most Polluted City In July 2026

Leaving Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru and other major metros behind, Aurangabad in Bihar emerged as India's most polluted city in July 2026, with an average PM2.5 concentration of 168 µg/m³.

Across 28 monitored days, Aurangabad breached the national 24-hour PM2.5 standard of 60 µg/m³ on 21 days. The city recorded eight days in the "severe" category, five in the "very poor" category and three in the "poor" category, underscoring the severity of its air pollution even during the monsoon, according to a report by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air.

Manguraha in Bihar ranked second, with a monthly average PM2.5 concentration of 96 µg/m³. During July, the city logged eight total days of poor-to-severe air pollution alongside 18 satisfactory or good days. Rupnagar in Punjab rounded out the top three. Khora in Uttar Pradesh ranked fourth with a monthly average of 77 µg/m³.

Haryana, too, emerged as a major pollution hotspot, with five cities featuring among India's 10 most polluted in July. Gurgaon ranked as the fifth most polluted city in India in July 2026, recording a monthly average PM2.5 concentration of 76 µg/m³. Panipat ranked sixth at 75 µg/m³, followed by Sonipat at 68 µg/m³, Charkhi Dadri at 67 µg/m³ and Ballabgarh at 66 µg/m³.

All five Haryana cities recorded monthly average PM2.5 concentrations above India's 24-hour National Ambient Air Quality Standard of 60 µg/m³, a particularly notable finding given that July falls within the monsoon season, when rainfall typically helps clear pollutants from the air.

While several cities suffered high pollution levels, India's major metros stayed within the daily NAAQS threshold of 60 µg/m³ in July.

Delhi led metro concentrations at 39 µg/m³, followed by Chennai (24), Kolkata (23), Bengaluru (20), and Mumbai (15). While 240 of 256 adequately monitored cities met domestic standards, only 41 achieved the WHO's health guideline of 15 µg/m³.

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