Lucknow, Sep 18 (PTI) Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav on Friday met Uttar Pradesh chief minister and reviewed the action plan for preventing air pollution at a high-level meeting.
Yadav said issues related to old vehicles, the state’s new electric vehicle policy, electric buses, mandatory pollution-under-control certificates and aggregator vehicles were discussed as part of measures to curb vehicular emissions, according to a statement released here.
The minister also pointed out that Lucknow has secured the first position among 130 cities surveyed for clean air under the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP), while several other Uttar Pradesh cities also performed well.
According to a statement issued by the state government, the meeting
at the chief minister’s residence reviewed the action plan for preventing air pollution — with discussions focusing on vehicular, industrial and dust pollution — in the state’s eight National Capital Region (NCR) districts, including Noida, Hapur, Ghaziabad, Meerut and Bulandshahr.
On industrial pollution, Yadav said around 80 per cent of industries have been equipped with Online Continuous Emission Monitoring Systems (OCEMS) and air pollution control devices, while steps are being taken to cover the remaining units.
The meeting also discussed a plan for mechanised and deep cleaning to control dust pollution. It was agreed that consultations would be held with various departments and stakeholders to ensure effective implementation of solid waste management and Construction and Demolition Waste Management Rules, the minister said.
Yadav said Agra and other cities in Uttar Pradesh had also performed well in the clean air survey. He congratulated Adityanath for plantation exceeding the target under the ‘Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam’ campaign.
The minister said he had held meetings with Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini and Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta before meeting Adityanath, and would now hold discussions with the chief ministers of Rajasthan and Punjab to strengthen pollution-control efforts.
He said the Centre was also coordinating with state agriculture ministers on crop residue management. More than 30 meetings have been held since December last year on air pollution control in the NCR, he added.
Yadav said directions had been issued to appoint nodal officers after meetings with local bodies and public representatives from 63 small cities.
Public cooperation and media awareness would also play an important role in making the campaign successful, he said.
Chairman of the Commission for Air Quality Management Rajesh Verma and senior officials of various Uttar Pradesh departments attended the meeting.
Apart from Lucknow, Odisha’s Rourkela and Kalinga Nagar have emerged as top performers in the fifth edition of the Swachh Vayu Sarvekshan Awards.
Cities and towns nationwide were ranked based on the Swachh Vayu Survekshan Framework released in 2022-23, which laid down measures to tackle road dust, vehicular emissions and industrial pollution, among others. PTI CDN PRK
