Air quality a nationwide crisis, govt response exceedingly ineffective: Congress
Congress general secretary for communications Jairam Ramesh said NCAP, touted as the National Clean Air Programme, was actually another type of NCAP – the ‘Conceptual Clean Air Programme’.
The former environment minister said a new analysis by the Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) has now confirmed India’s always “worst kept secret that air quality is a structural crisis across the country and that the government’s response has been grossly ineffective and inadequate”.
Using satellite data, Ramesh found that nearly 44 percent of Indian cities (i.e. 1,787 of the 4,041 legal towns assessed) had chronic air pollution, with annual PM2.5 levels consistently exceeding the national standard for five years (2019-2024, excluding 2020), Ramesh said in a statement.
Pointing out that the ineffectiveness of NCAP was also emphasized in the report, the Congress leader said that despite the size of the problem (1,787 towns), only 130 cities were included within the scope of the National Clean Air Program (NCAP).
He claimed that 28 of these 130 cities still lack continuous ambient air quality monitoring stations (CAAQMS).
Of the 102 cities with monitoring infrastructure, 100 have PM10 levels of 80 percent or higher, Ramesh said, adding that in total, NCAP currently targets only 4 percent of India’s chronically polluted cities. NCAP, touted as the National Clean Air Programme, is actually another variant of NCAP – the Conceptual Clean Air Programme, he said, and argued that it now needs a comprehensive overhaul and reform.
“The first step should be to acknowledge the public health crisis associated with air pollution across a large part of India. Consequently, in view of this crisis, we must reconsider and completely revamp both the Air Pollution (Control and Prevention) Act, 1981 and the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS), which came into force in November 2009,” Ramesh said. he said.
He pointed out that the permissible concentration of fine particulate matter according to NAAQS is 60 ug/m3 for a 24-hour period and 40 ug/m3 annually; In contrast, less than 15 ug/m3 for a 24-hour period and 5 ug/m3 per year set by the WHO, he pointed out.
Ramesh urged the government to substantially increase the funds provided under NCAP.
“The current budget, including NCAP funding and 15th Finance Commission grants, is about Rs 10,500 billion spread across 131 cities! Our cities need at least 10-20 times more funding. NCAP should be made into a Rs 25,000 Million program and spread across the 1,000 most polluted towns in the country,” he said.
The former environment minister said NCAP should adopt the measurement of PM 2.5 levels as a performance measure, redirecting NCAP’s focus on key emissions sources such as the burning of solid fuels, vehicle emissions and industrial emissions.
“NCAP should be given legal backing, an enforcement mechanism and serious data tracking capacity for every Indian city, beyond just focusing on ‘failing’ cities,” he argued.
Ramesh asserted that air pollution norms for coal power plants should be implemented immediately.
He said all power plants must install a Fluoride Gas Desulfurizer (FGD) by the end of 2026.
“The independence of the National Green Tribunal must be restored and the anti-people environmental law amendments made in the last 10 years must be reversed,” Ramesh said. he said.
“Twice in Parliament so far – first on July 29, 2024 and then on December 9, 2025 – the Modi Government has tried to downplay the health impact of air pollution. The Modi Government is not blind to the truth, it is just trying to cover up the extent of its incompetence and negligence,” the Congress leader said. he said.
