UNDP team visits Amritsar to assess air pollution

UPDATE

AMRITSAR: A team of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) on June 26, visited Amritsar for assembling ground report for the execution of the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) in association with the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF & CC).

The UNDP has started inculcating this mission on air pollution in three cities- Amritsar (Punjab), Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh), Gurugram (National Capital Region).

The objective of this mission is to develop a strategy paper on combating air pollution in India with practical inputs for implementation of the NCAP at the national and sub-national levels to present a roadmap for United Nation’s engagement in the state/city and at the national level in India.

Xiaofang Zhou, Mission Leader and Director, Montreal Protocol and Chemicals Unit, New York (UNDP), along with 14 members, held a meeting with the district administration officials and the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB), academic and civil society institutions.

The PPCB and Department of Science, Technology and Environment, under the leadership of SS Marwaha, Chairperson-Professor and Rakesh Verma, Principal Secretary, have confirmed the clean air action plan for nine non-attainment cities and Amritsar is one among the cities.

Krunesh Garg, member secretary of the board, presented the noticeable features of clean air action plan of the city notifying about the air quality of Amritsar. The air quality index of Amritsar has decreased from 132 to 115 for 2017 and 2018, respectively. Additionally, the monthly average value of AQI from January 2019 to May 2019 is recorded as 100, which is almost satisfactory. Shivdular Singh Dhillon, Deputy Commissioner, Amritsar, came out strongly with a proposal of introduction of metro rail project in Amritsar, which can be operative for abolition of movements of vehicles carrying tourists in the city thereby dropping the vehicular emission.