Hyderabad experience shows NCAP likely to be a non-starter

HYDERABAD: Launched with much fanfare a few days ago, the Central government’s much-awaited National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) is being touted as a critical measure to improve the air quality of as many as 102 cities including Hyderabad. The targets, however, appear a little too unrealistic, considering the extent to which the air quality of many of these cities have deteriorated. The city’s former experiences with similar pollution-control programmes indicate that the programme might not achieve much success, unless it is modified and made more target-oriented.

The NCAP proposes to reduce the concentration of Particulate Matter (PM) in air, of both PM2.5 and PM10, by 20-30 per cent as compared to the concentrations recorded in 2017. This aim is to be achieved by 2024. While taking a look at the PM concentrations recorded by the Pollution Control Board in Hyderabad over the past decade, Express found the NCAP target to be rather unrealistic. There has been no reduction in the concentration of PM10 levels over the past decade. Rather, they have increased by more than 100- 250 per cent in some places.

This is despite two NCAP-like plans enforced in Hyderabad. The erstwhile Andhra Pradesh government had implemented an air pollution control programme in Hyderabad from 2003 to 2010. In 2017 as well, the Telangana government enforced an action plan for pollution control in city with 32 action points, similar to NCAP’s 42 points. Both include measures like installation of remote sensor based PUC system, promoting battery operated vehicles, developing expressways/ by-passes for avoiding congestion and taking action against polluting industrial units.

In 2008, the annual PM10 concentration at some areas like Charminar, Paradise, Kukatpally, Jubilee Hills, Uppal and Abids were 118, 114, 85, 50, 98 and 115 (in micrograms per metre cube), much above the annual air quality standard of 60 as prescribed by the PCB. Nine years later in 2017, the PM10 concentration in these areas were 122, 112, 108, 133, 115 and 127 respectively In November 2018, the concentration recorded were 110, 107, 137, 118, 134 and 97 respectively.

The data points towards a need for a more practical, strictly target-oriented approach for pollution reduction in city, unlike the NCAP. It remains to be seen if the programme indeed meets the hype surrounding it.