V'wada, Vizag fall short on pollution control spending

Time of India

7 hours ago

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isakhapatnam: Visakhapatnam and Vijayawada have shown limited progress in utilising allocated funds to control air pollution under the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP).
For instance, Vijayawada spent only 57 crore out of the 130 crore allocated, while Visakhapatnam spent just 39 crore of its 129 crore allocation. Of the 13 cities selected from Andhra Pradesh, smaller cities have fared better in terms of expenditure. For example, Eluru utilised 4.6 crore out of the allocated 5.2 crore. Similarly, Kurnool used 5.3 crore on pollution control measures against the sanctioned 6.3 crore.
Guntur also fared better than Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam, with over 86% spending. The expenditure in Srikakulam stood at 3.4 crore out of the sanctioned 3.96 crore.
However, air pollution remains a significant concern in several cities across the state, particularly in Visakhapatnam, which recorded an average PM10 level of 108 µg/m³ in 2024. Notably, based on a nationwide analysis, Visakhapatnam appeared six times in the list of the top 10 most polluted cities in India in September 2024, based on PM 2.5 concentration levels.
by Taboola
by Taboola
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A total of 67 cities appeared in the daily top 10 most polluted cities list during the month. Of these, 26 cities appeared at least five times over the 30-day period, and Visakhapatnam. Vijayawada was listed among the top 10 most polluted cities for three days in September. Industrial pollution significantly contributes to the air quality issues in Visakhapatnam. However, vehicular emissions, construction activities, road dust resuspension, and biomass burning also exacerbate air pollution in both Visakhapatnam and Vijayawada.
The NCAP, launched by Union govt in 2019, covers 13 non-attainment cities (cities not meeting pollution standards) in Andhra Pradesh. Under this, each city prepared an action plan to control the pollution levels. Funding will be released to implement these measures proposed in the city-level action plans. Sluggish spending means delay in the implementing of these measures, which will ultimately affect the public.
The state achieved a reduction in PM 10 levels in three cities, meeting the initial NCAP target of a 20–30% reduction. However, no city in Andhra Pradesh has achieved the revised target of a 40% reduction in PM10 levels as of 2024. The ambitious goal appears unattainable for most cities without substantial policy shifts and action plans. In total, Andhra Pradesh has three cities that achieved the initial target of a 20–30% reduction in PM10 levels by 2024, two cities with reductions between 1-20%, and one city where the PM10 concentration increased compared to baseline levels.