Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s signature Ujjwala Scheme came in for rich praise in a new WHO pollution report, the Indian Express reported on Wednesday.
Launched by PM Modi on May 1, 2016 in Ballia, Uttar Pradesh, Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) aims to safeguard the health of women & children. BPL families are given LPG connections with a support of Rs 1,600 per connection in the next three years.
“While the latest data show ambient air pollution levels are still dangerously high in most parts of the world, they also show some positive progress. Countries are taking measures to tackle and reduce air pollution from particulate matter. For example, in just two years, India’s Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana Scheme has provided some 37 million women living below the poverty line with free LPG connections to support them to switch to clean household energy use,” the report said.
The report nevertheless estimated that 9 out of 10 people around the world breathe air containing high levels of pollutants. An estimated 7 million people every year die of diseases caused by ambient (outdoor) and household air pollution.
The latest WHO ranking of cities based on ambient air quality released on May 2 lists eight Indian cities as the top most polluted cities in the world. Furthermore, the list of the top 30 most polluted cities in the world has 20 Indian cities on the list.
Of the cities, Gwalior in Madhya Pradesh tops the list, followed by Kanpur, Faridabad and Allahabad. Varanasi ranks sixth on the list, while Gaya, Patna, Raipur and New Delhi follow. Muzaffarpur is listed 14th on the list.
Late last year, Greenpeace India, as part of its Airpocalypse-II Report, had complied data from 280 cities across the country. The data highlighted that more than 80% cities had pollution levels beyond National Ambient Air Quality (NAAQ) set up by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).
Interestingly in 2016, the WHO report contains data for only 32 Indian cities. This is despite the Central Pollution Control Board and State Pollution Control Boards monitoring air quality data for 300 cities across the country. Experts have cited this as lack of readily available data in the public domain.
Furthermore, the Ministry of Environment and Forest has identified 100 non-attainment cities under the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP). However, the NCAP misses three of the 20 most polluted cities highlighted in the WHO report, namely Gaya, Patna and Muzzaffarpur.
The report also reveals an alarming death toll of 7 million people every year caused by ambient (outdoor) and household air pollution. “Air pollution alone caused 4.2 million deaths in 2016. The highest air pollution levels are in the Eastern Mediterranean Region and in South-East Asia, with annual mean levels often exceeding more than 5 times WHO limits,” the report adds.
