New Delhi, March 23 Delhi recorded the lowest annual average of particulate matter PM2.5 and PM10 in 2025, excluding the year of the Covid pandemic, i.e., 2020, according to the economic survey of 2025-26 presented in the Delhi Assembly by Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Monday.
The report, which cites data from the Delhi Pollution Control Committee's (DPCC) Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring System (CAAQMS), indicates that the annual average of PM10 in 2025 was 209 (measured in micrograms per cubic metre), and that of PM2.5 was 100.
This was the lowest since 2015, before which data is unavailable. In 2020, which was the year of the global Covid pandemic, the annual average of PM10 dropped to 187, but PM2.5 remained at 101, one unit higher than 2025.
According to the DPCC data provided, the annual average of PM10 and PM2.5 in 2024 were 225 and 110, respectively, and in 2023 were 219 and 106.
The annual average of PM10 and PM2.5 were 223 and 103 in 2022, and were 221 and 113 in 2021, respectively.
The report stated that the annual mean ambient air quality level in Delhi during 2025, based on data up to December 9, 2025, was as follows: the average concentration was 100 µg/m³ and 209 µg/m³ for PM2.5 and PM10, respectively. The peak of PM10 was recorded on May 15, 2025, when the concentration of PM10 reached up to 1154 µg/m³ due to a heavy dust storm. However, PM2.5 reached up to 451 µg/m³ on October 21, 2025, after Diwali.
The survey further mentioned that the number of "good air days" (days with good/satisfactory/moderate air quality) has increased from 159 in 2018 to 200 in 2025.
The standard or desirable value for the annual average should be around 60 for PM10 and 40 for PM 2.5.
