New Delhi, July 25 (HS). The central government said on Thursday that there is no definite data available on deaths related to air pollution at present. This information was given by Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Kirti Vardhan Singh in a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday. The minister said that no conclusive data is available to establish a direct link of death due to air pollution alone. Air pollution is one of the many factors affecting respiratory diseases and related diseases.

Health is affected by many factors, which include eating habits, occupational habits, socio-economic status, medical history, immunity, genetics etc. of individuals in addition to the environment. He said that the National Clean Air Program (NCAP) has been launched by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change in January 2019. It aims to improve air quality in 131 cities (non-attainment cities and million-plus cities) in 24 states by involving all stakeholders. Kirti Vardhan Singh said that the National Clean Air Programme has a target of reducing particulate matter (PM) concentration by 20-30 percent by 2024 as compared to the 2017 baseline. The target has been revised to reduce PM10 levels by 40 percent by 2025-26 or achieve national standards. He said that City Action Plans (CAPs) have been prepared by all 131 cities and are being implemented by urban local bodies. City specific Clean Air Action Plans target city specific air pollution sources such as soil and road dust, vehicles, domestic fuels, waste burning, construction materials and industries. Kirti Vardhan Singh said that performance based financial assistance is provided to these 131 cities for implementation of City Action Plan activities. Besides, funding is mobilized through various schemes of Central Government like Swachh Bharat Mission SBM (Urban), Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT), Smart City Mission, Sustainable Alternatives for Affordable Transportation (SATAT), Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric Vehicles (FAME-II), Nagar Van Yojana etc. and resources from State/UT Governments and agencies like Municipal Corporation, Urban Development Authority and Industrial Development Authority etc. He said that Public Grievance Redressal Portal (PGRP)/Helpline has been developed by all 131 cities for timely redressal of public grievances on air pollution. Kirti Vardhan Singh said that Emergency Response System (ERS/GRAP) has been developed by all 131 cities to take action in air emergencies. Rs 19,614.44 crore has been set aside for 131 cities for the period from FY 2019-20 to FY 2025-26, out of which over 49 million cities/urban agglomerations are funded under the Fifteenth Finance Commission Air Quality Grant. The remaining 82 cities are funded by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change under the Pollution Control Scheme. So far, an amount of Rs 11,211.13 crore has been released to 131 cities for implementing City Action Plans in their respective cities. He said that out of 131 cities, 95 cities have shown improvement in air quality in terms of annual PM10 concentrations in FY 2023-24 with respect to the baseline of FY 2017-18. 18 cities have met the National Ambient Air Quality Standards for PM10 in FY 2023-24.

Hindusthan Samachar / Indrani Sarkar / Manoj Kumar Tayal