Yes, a new report confirms that most of the world is breathing polluted air, with only 17% of cities meeting clean air standards. India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh are among the most polluted countries, while Oceania remains the cleanest region. Monitoring gaps may mean pollution levels are even worse than reported.

Most of the global population is breathing polluted air, with only 17% of cities meeting air pollution norms, according to a report released by Switzerland-based air quality monitoring database IQAir on Tuesday as part of its World Air Quality Report for 2024.

The findings revealed that Chad, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Congo, and India were among the five most polluted countries in the world. In contrast, only seven countries—Australia, the Bahamas, Barbados, Estonia, Grenada, Iceland, and New Zealand—met the annual average PM2.5 guideline established by the World Health Organization.

The report's analysis is based on data collected from 40,000 air quality monitoring stations across 138 countries. India accounted for 13 of the top 20 most polluted cities worldwide. Byrnihat, a small industrial town in India’s northeast, ranked as the most polluted metropolitan area globally, while Delhi remained the most polluted capital city in the world.

The report also pointed out that several regions lack adequate monitoring infrastructure, meaning the actual level of air pollution could be significantly higher than recorded. In Africa, for example, there is only one monitoring station for every 3.7 million people.

"There has been notable progress in expanding air quality monitoring across various countries, regions, and territories over the past 12 months. However, considerable gaps still exist in government-operated regulatory systems in many parts of the world," the report stated.

Meanwhile, Oceania was identified as the cleanest region on the planet, with 57% of its cities meeting air quality guidelines.