The Union Environment Minister chaired the fourth meeting of the Apex Committee of the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) on the occasion of Swachh Vayu Diwas or the International Day of Clean Air for blue skies. This meeting was held in Jaipur and a press release on the meeting was issued on September 8, 2024.
The meeting reviewed the implementation of National, State, and City clean air action plans in 24 States/UTs and 131 cities. It was informed that under the NCAP, a performance-based grant of Rs. 19,612 crore has been allocated to 131 cities for implementing their city action plans from 2019-20 to 2025-26. So far, Rs. 11,211 crore has been provided to these cities to achieve the target of 40% reduction in PM10 levels by 2025-26.
The meeting also discussed air quality improvement activities undertaken in 131 cities in sectors such as road dust, vehicular pollution, waste management, greening of urban spaces, and industrial pollution. The Union Minister highlighted the creation of 3776 hectares of Nagar Van/Vatikas under the Nagar Van Yojana of MoEFCC in 64 cities, with a sanctioned amount of Rs. 142 crore. He urged the remaining cities to avail resources under the scheme to develop green spaces.
The Minister congratulated nine better-performing cities under the Swachh Vayu Sarvekshan for utilizing resources from Central and State Government schemes/programs and scientifically addressing air pollution reduction measures. He appreciated the efforts made by all stakeholders under the program for improving air quality in 95 cities and 18 cities meeting National Ambient Air Quality Standards in PM10 levels in 2023-24.
The Union Minister informed that 51 cities have achieved a 20% reduction and 21 cities have already achieved a 40% reduction in PM10 levels. He commended the extensive tree plantation drives conducted in 131 cities under Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam. He provided guidance to all States/UTs for the convergence of Central and State Government schemes/programs and highlighted the importance of these schemes in addressing air pollution.
He also highlighted the recent initiative to set up a Coordinating Mechanism to address transboundary movement of air pollution in the Indo-Gangetic Plain (IGP) region. The Minister urged all cities to update their clean action plans on a 100% saturation basis and implement Mission LiFE actions. He also called for the implementation of proposed reforms in areas such as waste management, vehicular pollution, and public awareness to provide better clean air to all.
Several Union Ministries presented their progress and convergence of schemes implemented in 131 cities. The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs highlighted activities undertaken under its programs like the National Mission on Sustainable Habitat, Swachh Bharat Mission 2.0, AMRUT, Smart City Mission, and PM e-bus Sewa. The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gases presented the status of city gas distribution networks and its plans for expanding CNG stations and PNG connections. The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways highlighted the implementation of the vehicle scrapping policy and the creation of automated testing stations and vehicle scrapping facilities. The Ministry of Power briefed the status of using biomass in thermal power plants to reduce biomass burning.
Municipal Commissioners of the best-performing cities under Swachh Vayu Sarvekshan, namely Surat, Firozabad, and Raebareli, presented their strategies and success stories in dealing with air pollution.
