NEW DELHI : The findings, based on estimates by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME), reveal that long-term exposure to particulate matter (PM2.5) claimed around 17,188 lives in the national capital last year, making one in every seven deaths linked to the city’s toxic air.
Despite the staggering numbers, the Union Environment Ministry maintains there is “no conclusive evidence” directly linking air pollution to mortality, calling it one of several contributing factors. However, researchers at the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), which analysed the data, argue that the findings highlight the urgent need to recognise air pollution as a public health emergency rather than an environmental inconvenience.
Dr Kumar, one of the researchers, explained that particulate matter affects far more than just the lungs. Fine particles travel deep into the lungs, reach the alveoli, and enter the bloodstream. Over time, they accumulate in blood vessels, reducing oxygen flow to vital organs and triggering strokes, heart attacks, and other chronic illnesses, he emphasized.
The GBD analysis shows that deaths linked to air pollution in Delhi rose from 15,786 in 2018 to 17,188 in 2023, despite the introduction of several air quality management plans. Deaths from high blood pressure and diabetes also increased during the same period but remained lower than those caused by pollution.
Following air pollution, other major risk factors for mortality in 2023 included high systolic blood pressure (12.5%), high fasting plasma glucose or diabetes (9%), high cholesterol (6%), and obesity (5.6%). CREA researchers noted that year after year, particulate matter pollution continues to cause more deaths than hypertension or diabetes.
According to CREA’s latest PM2.5 assessment for October 2025, Delhi ranked sixth among India’s most polluted cities, recording an average concentration of 107 µg/m³, three times higher than September’s average. Dharuhera in Haryana topped the list at 123 µg/m³.
Stubble burning contributed to less than six per cent of Delhi’s PM2.5 levels in October, suggesting that local emission sources, vehicles, industries, and year-round combustion, remain the dominant culprits driving the capital’s deadly air crisis.
In 2023, air pollution in Delhi was linked to 17,188 deaths, making it a leading cause of mortality, according to a study. Researchers call for urgent action, highlighting the severe health impacts of PM2.5, while the government remains skeptical about the direct link between pollution and death.