India sets own air standards, WHO guidelines not binding, says govt

Minister of State for Environment Kirti Vardhan Singh said India has already notified its National Ambient Air Quality Standards for 12 pollutants to protect public health and environmental quality

The government on Thursday told Parliament that global air quality rankings cited by various organisations are not conducted by any official authority and that the World Health Organisation's (WHO) air quality guidelines serve only as advisory values, not binding standards.

Responding to a question in the Rajya Sabha on India's position in global indices such as IQAir's World Air Quality Ranking, the WHO Global Air Quality Database, the Environmental Performance Index (EPI) and the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) metrics, the Environment Ministry said no official country-wise pollution ranking is carried out worldwide.

Minister of State for Environment Kirti Vardhan Singh said the WHO's guidelines are meant to help countries set their own standards, taking into account geography, environmental conditions, background levels and national circumstances.

He said India has already notified its National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for 12 pollutants to protect public health and environmental quality.

The minister also clarified that while no global authority ranks countries officially, it conducts its own annual Swachh Vayu Survekshan to assess and rank 130 cities covered under the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) on the basis of air quality improvement measures.

Better-performing cities are felicitated every year on National Swachh Vayu Diwas on September 7.