Greenpeace India report on air pollution released
A Greenpeace India report says 80% of Indian cities have pollution levels exceeding particulate matter standards. Jharia in Jharkhand tops the list faring as the most polluted city in terms of PM10 (particulate matter 10 micron). The report also highlights that almost all States including Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Telangana, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Bihar have a bigger number of non-attainment cities compared to the 102 included under National Clean Air Programme (NCAP).
The NCAP is a programme of the Union Environment Ministry to reduce pollution by at least 20% in 102 cities that have failed to meet clean-air standards. Cities and States have submitted plans and roadmaps — and they will then be funded by the Centre — to achieve them.
The report analyzed pollution data of 238 cities with at least 52 days of monitoring data.
Key Highlights of the Report
- Delhi showed improvement compared to last two years but still clocked pollution levels 3.5 times more than the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS), which is also more than 11 times the WHO prescribed limits for PM10, the report noted.
- The ‘Airpocalypse – IV Report’ underlines that the CPCB has identified only 122 non-attainment cities and 102 of them are included under the NCAP till now. These 122 cities are spread across 28 States and nine Union Territories and is ‘incomplete’ leaving 116 more cities which exceed the 60 µg/m3 limit prescribed by NAAQS, according to 2018 annual data.
- The coal-belching town of Jharia in Jharkhand continues to be the most polluted city in India. Average annual levels of PM10, particulate matter less than 10 micrometers in diameter that can enter the lungs and even the bloodstream, in Jharia was 322 micrograms per cubic metre in 2018, more than six times the safe limits of 0-60, according to the report.
About NCAP
The NCAP is a programme of the Union Environment Ministry to reduce pollution by at least 20% in 102 cities that have failed to meet clean-air standards. Cities and States have submitted plans and roadmaps — and they will then be funded by the Centre — to achieve them.
About Greenpeace India
- Greenpeace India is the Indian branch of the global environmental group Greenpeace, a non-profit NGO, with a presence in 55 countries across Europe, the Americas, and Asia. Greenpeace India has legally registered society in 4 locations with Bengaluru has its headquarters and other branches at Delhi, Chennai, Patna.
- The organization states that it receives 60% of its funding from donors in India, 38% from Netherlands-based Greenpeace International and less than 1% from the US-based Climate Works Foundation, as of from June 2014 the organisation does not receive any foreign funds
SOURCE: The Hindu
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