Bengaluru has improved its performance in the national Clean Air Survey 2026, moving up to the 32nd position among cities with populations above 10 lakh. The city secured 152.6 points under the Swachh Vayu Sarvekshan assessment, marking an improvement over its performance in the previous edition. Despite the progress, Bengaluru continued to rank below several other major metropolitan cities included in the survey.

The city had occupied the 36th position in the 2025 Clean Air Survey, when it recorded 145.1 points out of 200. Its latest score of 152.6 represents an improvement of 7.5 points compared with the previous assessment. The higher score and improved ranking indicate progress in the parameters considered under the clean-air assessment, although Bengaluru still has further ground to cover when compared with the country's better-performing cities.

The national survey evaluates cities and towns using the Swachh Vayu Survekshan Framework released during 2022-23. The framework provides a basis for assessing efforts aimed at improving air quality and implementing measures related to pollution control. Bengaluru's improved position suggests that the city has strengthened its performance under the assessment, while the ranking also highlights the continuing competition among India's major urban centres.

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Bengaluru, however, remained behind Delhi, Mumbai and Hyderabad in the latest rankings. Hyderabad secured the 19th position, making it the highest-ranked among these major metropolitan cities. Delhi was placed 21st, while Mumbai ranked 28th. Bengaluru's 32nd position therefore leaves it four places behind Mumbai, 11 places behind Delhi and 13 places behind Hyderabad in the population category covered by the survey.

The improvement is nevertheless significant when compared with Bengaluru's position a year earlier. Moving from 36th to 32nd place, alongside an increase from 145.1 to 152.6 points, indicates a measurable improvement in the city's overall assessment. However, the rankings also show that better performance in the survey does not automatically place Bengaluru among the leading metropolitan cities, with several urban centres continuing to score higher.

Bengaluru's latest result therefore presents a mixed picture, combining improvement with the need for further progress. The city has raised both its score and national ranking compared with 2025, but it continues to trail Delhi, Mumbai and Hyderabad among the major cities assessed. With the Clean Air Survey focusing on efforts to improve urban air quality, Bengaluru's challenge will now be to sustain its progress and close the gap with higher-ranked cities in future assessments.

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