Python - Make new Pandas Index with deleting multiple index elements

To create a new Pandas Index by deleting multiple index elements, use the index.delete() method. This method accepts a list of positions to remove and returns a new Index object without modifying the original.

Syntax

Index.delete(loc)

Where loc is an integer, list of integers, or array-like of integers representing positions to delete.

Basic Example

Let's start by creating an index and deleting multiple elements ?

import pandas as pd

# Create an index
index = pd.Index([15, 25, 35, 45, 55, 75, 95])
print("Original Index:")
print(index)

# Delete elements at positions 2 and 4 (values 35 and 55)
new_index = index.delete([2, 4])
print("\nAfter deleting positions 2 and 4:")
print(new_index)

Original Index:
Index([15, 25, 35, 45, 55, 75, 95], dtype='int64')

After deleting positions 2 and 4:
Index([15, 25, 45, 75, 95], dtype='int64')

Deleting Non-consecutive Positions

You can delete elements at any positions, not necessarily consecutive ?

import pandas as pd

# Create a string index
cities = pd.Index(['Tokyo', 'London', 'Paris', 'Berlin', 'Rome', 'Madrid'])
print("Original Index:")
print(cities)

# Delete elements at positions 0, 2, and 5 
new_cities = cities.delete([0, 2, 5])
print("\nAfter deleting positions 0, 2, and 5:")
print(new_cities)

Original Index:
Index(['Tokyo', 'London', 'Paris', 'Berlin', 'Rome', 'Madrid'], dtype='object')

After deleting positions 0, 2, and 5:
Index(['London', 'Berlin', 'Rome'], dtype='object')

Using with DataFrame Index

This method is commonly used to remove rows from a DataFrame by modifying its index ?

import pandas as pd

# Create a DataFrame
df = pd.DataFrame({
    'Name': ['Alice', 'Bob', 'Charlie', 'David', 'Eve'],
    'Score': [85, 92, 78, 88, 95]
})

print("Original DataFrame:")
print(df)

# Create new index by deleting positions 1 and 3
new_index = df.index.delete([1, 3])
df_filtered = df.loc[new_index]

print("\nDataFrame after removing rows at positions 1 and 3:")
print(df_filtered)

Original DataFrame:
      Name  Score
0    Alice     85
1      Bob     92
2  Charlie     78
3    David     88
4      Eve     95

DataFrame after removing rows at positions 1 and 3:
      Name  Score
0    Alice     85
2  Charlie     78
4      Eve     95

Key Points

• The delete() method returns a new Index object without modifying the original
• Positions are zero-indexed (first element is at position 0)
• You can pass a single integer or a list of integers for multiple deletions
• The method works with any Index type (numeric, string, datetime, etc.)

Conclusion

Use index.delete() with a list of positions to create a new Index by removing multiple elements. This method is particularly useful for filtering DataFrames by removing specific rows based on their positions.