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Congress Slams Centre Over 'Nationwide' Air Pollution Crisis and Inadequate Policy Response
Congress demands Rs 25,000 crore to expand National Clean Air Programme to 1,000 towns and calls for declaring air pollution a public health emergency amid widespread pollution.
- On Sunday, the Indian National Congress demanded the National Clean Air Programme be made a Rs 25,000 crore programme and spread across the 1,000 most polluted towns.
- CREA's analysis found nearly 44 per cent of cities—1,787 out of 4,041 statutory towns—have chronic air pollution, while NCAP covers only 130 of over 1,700 chronically polluted cities and India sets PM2.5 limits at 60 micrograms versus WHO's 15.
- CPCB data show a city's average AQI at 298 and overall AQI eased to 'poor' from 'very poor', while NCAP covers about 4 per cent of polluted cities with 28 lacking continuous monitoring and Rs 10,500 crore funding.
- To address the crisis, the Congress demanded a declaration of a public health emergency, revamping the Air Act, 1981, adopting PM2.5 as the primary performance yardstick, and mandating Flue Gas Desulphurisation systems in coal plants by the end of 2026.
- Congress argued that multiple studies link fine particulate matter exposure to severe cardiovascular and respiratory conditions and accused the Modi government of a deliberate cover-up and negligence.
11 Articles
11 Articles
Cong slams Centre over air pollution, cites policy failure - The Tribune
Calling air pollution “India’s worst-kept secret”, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh on Sunday slammed the Modi government, citing a report that he said exposed the scale of the country’s air quality emergency and the shortcomings of the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP).
Congress Slams Centre Over 'Nationwide' Air Pollution Crisis and Inadequate Policy Response
The Congress launched a blistering offensive against the Modi government on Sunday, characterising India’s deteriorating air quality as a "nationwide, structural crisis" rather than a mere seasonal or regional inconvenience.
The Siasat Daily
NewsDrumAir quality a nationwide crisis, govt response exceedingly ineffective:Cong
New Delhi: Congress on Sunday cited a report calling air pollution a nationwide structural crisis and said the government’s response is ineffective, seeking reform of the National Clean Air Programme. Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said the NCAP propagated as the National Clear Air Programme is actually another type of NCAP – “Notional Clear Air Programme”. The former environment minister said a new analysis by…
"Modi govt attempting to cover up scale of its incompetence": Jairam Ramesh slams Centre on air pollution issue
In a post on 'X', Ramesh issued a statement calling air pollution a nationwide public health emergency and saying the Modi government's response has been grossly inadequate and ineffective.
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