The Congress on Monday accused the Modi government of being in denial about the impact of air pollution on mortality in India, citing a report that attributed around two million deaths in the country in 2023 to air pollution. The party called for stricter pollution standards, a revamp of the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) and a new law focused on public health.
Congress general secretary in-charge of communications Jairam Ramesh cited a report by FICCI and EY, which estimated that air pollution accounted for about 22 per cent of all deaths in India in 2023.
In a post on X, Ramesh, a former environment minister, said the government had repeatedly rejected studies on the health impact of air pollution, both inside and outside Parliament, arguing that they were not specific to India or could not establish a direct and exclusive link between pollution and deaths.
"Now comes a detailed FICCI-EY report that says categorically that around 2 million deaths (about 22% of total) were attributable to air pollution in India in 2023. This is yet another wakeup call for the somnolent Modi Government," he said.
Ramesh argued that while ease of doing business was important, "ease of breathing is even more fundamental", adding that PM2.5 pollution had become a major health threat across several parts of the country.
He said the FICCI-EY report offered a phased 10-year roadmap for national action and called for its implementation to begin immediately. His proposed measures included tightening India's existing PM2.5 and ozone standards to bring them in line with World Health Organisation (WHO) safety recommendations.
He also called for revamping the National Clean Air Programme to prioritise PM2.5 and ozone pollution, and introducing a new Clean Air Act focused on public health to replace the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981.
Ramesh said the government could not dismiss the findings of an analysis by FICCI, which he described as one of the country's leading industry bodies with a long institutional history.
His remarks came as Delhi continued to grapple with high pollution levels following Diwali celebrations. A thick grey haze enveloped the national capital on Monday, reducing visibility and pushing the overall Air Quality Index (AQI) to 370, close to the 'severe' category.
The Delhi Technological University (DTU) and Burari Crossing monitoring stations recorded the highest AQI readings at 437 each. Four other monitoring stations reported 'poor' air quality, while the remaining stations were in the 'very poor' category.
According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), an AQI of 0-50 is classified as 'good', 51-100 as 'satisfactory', 101-200 as 'moderate', 201-300 as 'poor', 301-400 as 'very poor' and 401-500 as 'severe'.
Several parts of Delhi, including Bawana, Burari, Jahangirpuri, Sonia Vihar, Punjabi Bagh, Okhla and Rohini, recorded 'severe' air quality.
The Air Quality Early Warning System warned that Delhi's air quality was likely to deteriorate to the 'severe' category during the day and remain at that level over the following few days.
(With inputs PTI)
