Lok Sabha Question No. 357 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2015-12-01
Subject: Air Pollutants
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT,  FORESTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: GOKARAJU GANGA RAJU

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 357

TO BE ANSWERED ON 01.12.2015

## Air Pollutants

## 357. DR. GOKARAJU GANGA RAJU:

Will the Minister of ENVIRONMENT, FORESTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE be pleased to state:

- (a) whether as per a new study published in the journal ''Atmospheric Environment'' on air pollution in Delhi, the city suffers from a ''toxic blend of geography, growth, poor energy sources and unfavourable weather that boosts its dangerously high levels of air pollutants, including ultra-fine particles, the most harmful to human health'';
- (b) if  so,  the  measures  being  taken  by  the  Government  to  protect  the  population  from health-endangering pollutants;
- (c) whether the study report has also predicted that the number of road vehicles would increase from 4.7 million in 2010 to nearly 26 million by 2030; and
- (d) if  so,  the  steps  taken/being taken by Government to control the increasing pollution levels and improve increase the air quality in Delhi?

## ANSWER

MINISTER  OF  STATE  (INDEPENDENT  CHARGE)  FOR  ENVIRONMENT,  FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE

## (SHRI PRAKASH JAVADEKAR)

(a)Studies are published on different thematic areas in various journals from time to time which  represents  views  of  authors  and  in  most  cases  these  are  not  conclusive  and  needs further scientific scrutiny. In case of Delhi, the key pollutant which exceeds the permissible value relates to Particulate Matter.  Other pollutants like Sulphur dioxide(SO2)and Nitrogen dioxide(NO2)  are  generally  below  the  permissible  limits.  The  high  value  of  Particulate Matter (PM) in Delhi is due to many reasons including geo-climatic conditions, road dust, vehicular emission, construction activity, burning of biomass etc.

(b)  Pursuant  to  the  meetings  held  by  the  Ministry  with  the  Ministers  of  Environment  of NCT of Delhi and neighbouring States of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, the  State/UT  Governments  have  formulated  action  plans.  The  action  plans  submitted  to mitigate pollution in Delhi/NCR by these States/UT include strict enforcement of vehicular pollution norms, banning/enforcement of ban of burning of crop residue/biomass/municipal garbage, levying of environment compensation  charge, construction of Western  and  Eastern  Peripheral  Expressways, expansion of metro network, strengthening of public transport system, installation of 24X7 emission  monitoring  devices,  extensive  use  of  clean  fuels,  promotion  of  battery  operated vehicles etc.

(c)&(d) Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has predicted that the number of vehicles on road will increase from 4.7 million in 2010 to nearly 26 million by 2030.

(e)  To  minimize  the  impact  of  environmental  pollution  particularly  air  pollution,  the Government has inter alia taken the following actions:

- Notification  of  National  Ambient  Air  Quality  Standards  2009,  envisaging  12 pollutants;
- Formulation of regulations/statutes;
- Setting up of monitoring network for assessment of ambient air quality;
- Introduction of cleaner/alternate fuel like CNG, LPG etc. and promotion of public transport network including Metro;
- Creation  of  infrastructure  for  industrial  pollution  control  incorporating  cleaner production processes, setting up of common pollution control facilities;

Realizing  the  gravity  of  pollution,  further  steps  taken  by  the  government  to  address pollution, include the following:

- Launching of Clean India Mission (Swatch Bharat Abhiyan);
- Draft Rules for handing and management of municipal waste have been notified for comments of stakeholders;
- Standards  for  sewage  treatment  plants  have  been  notified  for  comments  of stakeholders;
- Implementation  of  Bharat  Stage  IV  norms  expanded  to  63  selected  cities  and Bharat Stage III norms in rest of the country;
- National  Air  Quality  index  was  launched  by  the  Prime  Minister  in  April,  2015 starting with 10 cities;
- Banning of burning of leaves/ biomass;
- Relevant  draft  rules,  including  those  pertaining  to  construction  and  demolition waste have been notified;
- Regular co-ordination meetings are being held at ministerial level with Delhi and other State Governments within the National Capital Region (NCR) on 6 th April, 13 th April,  24 th July,  2015  and  6 th November,2015  to  control  environmental pollution in NCR adopting air-shed approach;
- Short-term plan has been reviewed  and long-term plans have been formulated to mitigate pollution in NCR;
- Stringent industrial standards have been formulated and notified for public/stakeholder's comments and standard  for sugar industry, Thermal Power Plant and CETPs have been finalized;
- Government is giving high priority for public partnership in lane discipline, car pooling, vehicle maintenance, pollution under control certification etc.
- Out of  3386  major  industries,  1782  industries  have  installed  on-line  continuous (24X7) monitoring devices.

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