The air quality in Delhi is still in the ‘very poor’ category. India, thanks to its capital, has reached a stage where environment is an election issue. A CSDS survey done in December pointed out that bad air would be one of the issues influencing the outcome of the Delhi elections. But the problem is not just confined to Delhi. With nearly 76% of Indians living in places that do not meet the prescribed air quality standards, and nearly one in eight deaths in 2017 being attributed to exposure to polluted air, environmental concerns will soon influence national elections too.

In a welcome move at this juncture, the Centre has accepted that air pollution is a ‘major concern’, and allocated a substantial `4,400 crore in the Union Budget for the current financial year to deal with the problem. The money will be used to encourage states to formulate their own plan to ensure clean air. It’s at this juncture that Tamil Nadu has released its draft action plan on climate change. While the plan mostly focuses on climate adaptation, including pollution abatement policies in the draft will help the state get Central funding to clean up the air. This could be crucial for industrial clusters of Manali and Ranipet in TN, which are critically polluted, and have been struggling to find funding and resources to mitigate pollution. 

In yet another crucial move, the Union finance minister also warned that thermal power plants that do not meet environmental norms would be shut down. Soon after, the Central Pollution Control Board issued warnings to 14 plants across six states, including to the North Chennai Thermal Power Station. The environment ministry has also notified that it has shut down 170 old and polluting power stations to meet India’s emission norms. The budgetary boost to fight air pollution and regulatory action against traditional polluters are a cue: States need to buck up and start acting aggressively implementing new technologies that reduce air pollution, considering that the Centre has addressed the persistent problem of lack of funding.