Central team to visit Mumbai to take stock of city’s deteriorating air quality

The Union ministry’s move comes a week after they sent a letter to the state government’s environment department, expressing their concern over air pollution.

This will be the first time that a team from MOEFCC will be visiting the financial capital to review the measures taken to check the deteriorating air quality index (AQI).

In March 2016, bureaucrats from MOEFCC along with members from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), visited the Deonar landfill to examine the measures taken by the civic body to prevent fire incidents in dumping grounds. The visit followed a massive fire incident in January 2016 at the landfill, leading to severe air pollution in Mumbai.

According to civic officials, the visit this time will involve a comprehensive review of the compliance report, which the BMC is preparing to submit to the Centre. Sources in the civic body also said that the Centre has sought details about the utilisation of the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) funds, of which a significant proportion was used by the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) undertaking for acquiring electricity buses.

On October 20, The Indian Express published its series “Death by Breath”, which highlighted how man-made issues such as unmonitored construction works and garbage burning were contributing to the city’s worsening air quality and its impact on health of the citizens.

The Union ministry as well as the state government directed the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to take action, following which the civic body issued air pollution mitigation guidelines.

On October 26, the MOEFCC, in its letter to the state government, issued a 16-point guideline that could be implemented in Mumbai to tackle the worsening AQI. It also directed expanding the existing air quality monitoring system in Mumbai, by backing it up with hyper-local sensor based AQI monitors.

The union ministry also asked the BMC to implement waste segregation to avoid the disposal of biodegradable waste, electronic waste and single-use plastic in the landfills. The Centre also pointed out how there has been a loss of green cover in Mumbai in the past four years that contributed to air pollution.

“The compliance report is being prepared and we will also present a study of our observations made to the MOEFCC delegates during their visit. We are identifying pockets in the city where pollution is heavy and action taken by our ward offices,” an official said.