India, EU experts to discuss measures to tackle air pollution, deliberate on NCAP

Indian and European experts will gather in the national capital to brainstorm possible measures to tackle air pollution in India and deliberate on the draft National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) recently announced by the Environment Ministry.

The two-day conference on the 'EU India Air Quality Initiative' on May 21 and 22, being organised by AETS, France along with TERI, and supported by the European Union (EU) and the Environment Ministry, will also strive to find solutions to improve the local air quality.

The event will mark the culmination of the workshops organised in 2017 in Goa, Raipur and Bangalore, where the EU shared its best practices and experiences in addressing the issue of air pollution.

"The government's newly announced NCAP will also be up for discussion in the two-day conference. It will also propose multiple strategies to address this menace," a statement said.

The draft NCAP has been framed by the Environment Ministry with an overall objective of a comprehensive management plan for prevention, control and abatement of air pollution, besides augmenting the air quality monitoring network across the country.

The statement said that the EU is engaging with the Indian government to improve air quality by contributing to the drafting of a national air quality strategy and local action plans, with particular focus on urban settings, a statement said.

Through this project, the EU has engaged with the Environment Ministry and their executive agencies -- Central Pollution Control Board and State Pollution Control Boards (SPCBs) -- establishing a positive dialogue in various fields of action in terms of air quality management in India.

Pilot cities were selected for development of Local Action Plans aligned with and supported by EU best practices and discussions with officials started to enable the drafting of a national air quality strategy for India, the statement said.

"The impact of air quality on human health is undeniable and I am pleased that the EU is contributing to its improvement," said Ambassador Tomasz Kozlowski before the conference in the statement.

In the EU-India project, the present status of air quality issues and management has been assessed along with a gap analysis involving key stakeholders in India and mapping opportunities and challenges via use of local knowledge, research institutions among others.

Three urban cities Goa, Raipur and Bangalore - were selected in consultation with the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), using a multi-criteria approach.

Training sessions were given to the SPCBs on baseline assessment including emission inventory work and design and implementation of local action plans and associated monitoring schemes.

A report on the EU-India project will also be released at the conference.