Hyderabad: Beating Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai and Kolkata, Hyderabad has emerged as the best-performing among the country’s six major metros in the Swachh Vayu Sarvekshan 2026, the results of which were released recently.The city improved its ranking by three places, securing the 19th spot this year among India’s major urban centres with a population of over 10 lakh. It scored 174.2 points out of 200 in the assessment conducted by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).The survey evaluated the efforts of urban local bodies in implementing air-pollution mitigation measures, including road-dust management, control of construction and demolition waste, vehicular and industrial pollution, solid-waste management and public awareness initiatives.“The levels of particulate matter (RPM), suspended particulate matter (SPM), benzene and sulphur oxides are comparatively low in Hyderabad, giving it better air quality than several other metropolitan cities,” said Prasanna Kumar, a retired official of the TGPCB and environmentalist.He added: “The city also enjoys certain advantages over other metros because of its relatively recent urban expansion and geographical spread. Unlike older metros that developed around densely concentrated urban centres, Hyderabad’s growth has been more decentralised.”Experts, however, said increasing the city’s green cover would further strengthen its environmental resilience. They also called for promoting green buildings through measures such as rooftop gardens, terrace plantations and other forms of urban greening.Pollution board officials, encouraged by the city’s performance, said they were taking several measures to ensure further improvement in air quality.“Under the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP), Rs 100 crore has been sanctioned to TGSRTC for procuring electric buses. Another Rs 30 crore has been allocated to TGREDCO for setting up EV charging stations and strengthening the city’s electric vehicle infrastructure,” said a senior official of the TGPCB.“In addition, key departments, including the RTA, GHMC and police, have been brought under the air quality monitoring committee to prepare, oversee and coordinate action plans to control and mitigate air pollution,” the official added.Sangareddy, Nalgonda make the cutMeanwhile, the two other Telangana cities have featured among the better-performing urban centres in their respective population categories. Sangareddy secured the eighth position nationally among cities with a population of less than three lakh, scoring 186.8 points. Nalgonda followed closely, securing the 10th position with 185.8 points.At the ward level, Hyderabad also found representation in the state-level awards announced under the survey. Jubilee Hills Ward 215 was listed in category I (more than 30,000 population). Gunfoundry ward featured in category II with populations between 10,000 and 30,000.
