Environment Ministry Constitutes Committee To Implement NCAP To Reduce Air Pollution In 102 Cities By 2024

The Union Environment Ministry has formed a committee to implement the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP), reports The Hindu. The NCAP aims to reduce the particulate matter (PM) pollution by 20-30 per cent in at least 102 cities by 2024.

The committee will be chaired by the Secretary, Union Environment Ministry and has among its members the Joint Secretary (Thermal), Ministry of Power; Director-General, The Energy Resources Institute (TERI), the Delhi-based think-tank; and Professor Sachidananda Tripathi, Indian Institute of Technology-Kanpur (IIT-K).

The NCAP, which was unveiled in January, is conceived as a five-year action plan to provide the states and the Centre with a framework to combat the air pollution.

As per the report, the headquarter of the committee will be in Delhi and its responsibilities will include ensuring inter-ministerial organisation and cooperation, sharing information and resolving issues that could arise between ministries. The committee would also give overall guidance and directions to effectively implement the programmes.

The NCAP is launched by the central government as a comprehensive management plan for prevention, control and abatement of air pollution besides augmenting the air quality monitoring network across the country. The tentative national level target by NCAP is 20%–30% reduction of PM2.5 and PM10 concentration by 2024, reports Live Law.