As air air pollution stays a persistent nationwide problem, the Centre advised Parliament that the nation units its personal air norms and world air high quality rankings launched by varied organisations carry no official sanction. It additionally added that the World Well being Organisation’s (WHO) air high quality tips are advisory in nature and don’t represent obligatory requirements for India.
The Centre’s response on Thursday was to a query within the Rajya Sabha about India’s standing in world indices akin to IQAir’s World Air High quality Rating, the WHO World Air High quality Database, the Environmental Efficiency Index (EPI) and the World Burden of Illness (GBD) metrics.
Minister of State for Setting Kirti Vardhan Singh mentioned WHO tips are solely meant to assist nations body their very own requirements, factoring in geography, environmental circumstances and native circumstances.
“India has already notified its Nationwide Ambient Air High quality Requirements (NAAQS) for 12 key pollution to safeguard public well being and environmental high quality,” he added.
He added that whereas no world authority conducts official rankings, the federal government evaluates air high quality throughout the nation by its annual Swachh Vayu Survekshan, which ranks 130 cities underneath the Nationwide Clear Air Programme (NCAP) based mostly on enchancment efforts.
The Centre’s response to the air air pollution disaster comes months after information compiled by IQAir, a Swiss air high quality monitoring agency, revealed that India failed to fulfill the WHO’s stringent air high quality requirements for 2024.
In keeping with the report launched in March this yr, India ranked fifth globally for smog ranges, with 13 of the world’s 20 most polluted cities positioned within the nation. Byrnihat in Assam topped the listing, whereas Delhi was named essentially the most polluted capital metropolis on the earth.
Delhi has struggled to breathe clear air previously few months, with the Air High quality Index plunging to hazardous ranges.
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