♦ Acording to the 2025 World Air Quality Report, Pakistan was ranked the world’s most polluted country in 2025, with levels of hazardous fine particulate matter far exceeding global health standards. The annual report by Swiss air quality monitoring firm IQAir found that concentrations of PM2.5 — tiny airborne particles that pose serious health risks — were up to 13 times higher than the guideline set by the World Health Organization.

♦ According to the report, only 13 countries and territories managed to maintain average PM2.5 levels within the WHO’s recommended limit of less than 5 micrograms per cubic metre in 2025, up from seven countries in 2024.

♦ India ranked sixth amongst the world's most polluted countries, with a national average PM2.5 concentration of 48.9 g/m. That is nearly ten times the WHO's safe limit of 5 g/m. 

♦ In total, 130 out of 143 monitored countries and territories failed to meet the WHO air quality guideline, the report said.

♦ Bangladesh and Tajikistan ranked second and third, respectively, among the most polluted countries last year (2025).

♦ The report also found that only 14 percent of cities worldwide met the WHO air quality standard in 2025, down from 17 percent a year earlier. Researchers attributed part of the deterioration to massive wildfires in Canada, which pushed PM2.5 levels higher across the United States and even parts of Europe.

♦ Countries that managed to stay within the WHO limit included Australia, Iceland, Estonia and Panama.

♦ Loni in Ghaziabad, a satellite town bordering Delhi, was the world's most polluted city in 2025, recording an annual average PM2.5 of 112.5 g/m, a nearly 23% jump from 2024 and more than 22 times the WHO guideline.