Hazy initiative

New programme for clean air sets very modest targets

The National Clean Air Programme (NCAP), launched by the environment ministry, is a welcome, even if small, beginning towards mitigating the grave and rapidly aggravating air pollution in Indian cities. But given the magnitude of the task, the targets mooted under the plan and the means earmarked to achieve them need to be enhanced substantially to ensure its success. The NCAP aims to slash the content of air pollutants, especially the most hazardous particulate matter PM2.5 and PM10, by 20 to 30 per cent by 2024 over 2017 levels in selected 102 cities, including 43 smart cities. The programme is proposed to be implemented with the collaboration and involvement of various Central ministries, state governments, local bodies and other stakeholders with focus on all sources of pollution. It also proposes to take up studies to assess the impact of pollution on health and the economy, expand infrastructure for monitoring pollution levels on a regular basis, and introduce city-specific plantation plans to create virtual lungs for urban areas. Significantly, it does not overlook the need to tackle indoor air pollution, which is equally harmful.

On the downside, the NCAP’s initial target to cut pollution levels by just 20 to 30 per cent seems rather modest. The prevailing pollution levels in the selected cities, including metros, such as Delhi, are manifold higher than the permissible limits, and a reduction of this order would still leave their ambient atmosphere in the “poor” to “very poor” categories of air quality index. Besides, the funds allocated for the first two years of this five-year programme are merely Rs 300 crore — meaning less than Rs 1 crore per city for two years — which is a pittance, considering the intricacy and enormity of the mission. Moreover, the targets are non-binding in nature, thus, leaving room for inaction.

According to a World Health Organization (WHO) report released in May, India is the world’s second-most polluted country, next only to Nepal, with 14 of the 15 most polluted cities located here. Regrettably, this position has remained more or less unchanged since 2014. The ill-effects of toxic air on human health have now begun to show up. The findings of a study sponsored by the Indian Council of Medical Research and published in the reputed journal, The Lancet, last month indicated that 1.24 million lives were lost in 2017 due to causes attributable to air pollution. Another study by the Energy Policy Institute of the University of Chicago has pointed out that the unduly high content of PM2.5 and PM10 pollutants shortens the average Indian’s life expectancy by over four years.

The urgency of alleviating urban air pollution stems also from the fact that though the cities occupy just 3 per cent of the total land, they contribute over 80 per cent to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) and are responsible for 78 per cent of carbon dioxide emissions. Vehicular discharges are only one of the key factors that vitiate the urban air. The others are the burning of waste and fallen leaves; presence of garbage landfills within urban boundaries; manual sweeping of roads; use of unclean fuel for cooking; and existence of thermal power plants; and, more so, polluting industries in and around the towns. Unless adequate action is taken on these fronts, the NCAP may not deliver tangible results.