The World Health Organisation's report that listed over 30 Indian cities among the 100 most polluted in the world is misleading, the Centre said on Wednesday. The WHO report had not accounted for key pollutants such as sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and benzene while analysing air quality, Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar said. India will soon release its own pollution data of major cities across the United States and Europe, Javadekar added, before asking why western countries do not focus on themselves.

Delhi was listed as the 11th most polluted city in the world in the report, which was based on data from 2012-'13. Environmentalists had also warned that the report was misleading, as it only considered particulate matter PM 10 and PM 2.5, reported PTI. Javadekar said there are eight other major pollutants that were not considered by the WHO. “We will come out with the statistics as people should know the whole picture," he said, adding that the Centre's aim was not to counter allegations, but to spread awareness.