Noida, Gzb climb up air rankings, but still a breath away from comfort

Noida/Ghaziabad : Noida's report card on pollution has improved, but the city's residents are still breathing air that can slip into the poor category anytime. Noida climbed to eighth in the Centre's Swachh Vayu Sarvekshan for cities with a population of 3-10 lakh, one place up from last year. Neighbouring Ghaziabad , meanwhile, rose three places to ninth among cities with populations above 10 lakh. The rankings, released on Monday, show how cities tackle pollution rather than simply measuring the air people breathe. Into its fifth year, the survey assessed 130 cities on road dust control, solid waste management, vehicular and industrial emissions, construction and demolition waste, other emissions and public awareness. The exercise involved self-assessments, state-level scrutiny, CPCB evaluation and field verification. Noida scored 187.5 out of 200 in the 3-10 lakh category, sharing eighth place with Moradabad. It had ranked 24th in 2023, sixth in 2024 and ninth in 2025, after failing to secure a rank when the survey was launched in 2022. SP Singh, general manager at Noida Authority, attributed the improvement to tighter dust control at construction sites, mechanical sweeping, water sprinkling and pollution monitoring. 'We have also made efforts to expand green belts and promote clean transportation by introducing electric buses. Awareness campaigns and citizen participation have also played an important role,' he added. The Authority mechanically sweeps major roads and deploys anti-smog guns and water tankers at dust-prone locations. Officials said the focus now would be on meeting prescribed standards and improving the city's position further. But the ranking comes with an important caveat. Noida's air was recorded in the 'poor' category on Monday, with an AQI of 102, while PM2.5 stood at 54 micrograms per cubic metre and PM10 at 95. Recent winter episodes have been far worse, showing how quickly NCR's air can deteriorate when dust, emissions and stagnant winds combine. Ghaziabad, meanwhile, scored 184 points and moved from 12th to ninth nationally among 48 million-plus cities. In Uttar Pradesh, it climbed to third, behind Lucknow and Agra, from fourth last year. 'Since 2024, Ghaziabad has been steadily improving its ranking. From 18th in the country in 2024, we moved to 12th in 2025 and now to ninth,' municipal commissioner Vikramaditya Singh Malik said. He credited the gains in road dust control, solid-waste management and C&D waste management, while saying improvements in vehicular emissions and industrial pollution also helped. Yet, Ghaziabad's success story has a glaring weak spot – Loni. A recent GMC study found Loni's average PM10 concentration in 2025 was 213.63 micrograms per cubic metre, against 181.2 across monitoring stations in Vasundhara, Indirapuram and Sanjay Nagar — 18% higher. Its average PM2.5 was 114.25, compared with 85.80 in the city, a 33% gap. 'Loni recorded significantly higher concentrations throughout the year, raising the overall city average,' an official said. The study suggested separate assessment and targeted interventions for Loni and GMC areas. The distinction matters because a better ranking cannot by itself mean cleaner air. The Centre said 108 of 130 NCAP cities recorded lower PM10 levels in 2025-26 than in 2017-18, but only 14 met the national PM10 standard. You Can Also Check: Gold Rate in Noida | Silver Rate in Noida | Bank Holidays in Noida | Public Holidays in Noida | Noida AQI | Weather in Noida | Petrol Price in Noida | Diesel Price in Noida | CNG Price in Noida | LPG Price in Noida Stay updated with the latest Noida news. Download the TOI App.