Howrah, 15th July: SwitchON Foundation organized an environment groups meet at Howrah, West Bengal to provide an overview on the city’s Clean Air policy and come out with an action plan for mitigating air pollution and climate crisis by engaging different stakeholders. The meet was attended by leading and regional level NGO’s, Govt. Officials, Urban local bodies, academicians and volunteers at large.
SwitchON Foundation has formed ‘Bengal Clean Air Network (Bengal CAN)’ which is a network of national and regional organizations, trusts, clubs and volunteer groups. Through this forum, SwitchON aims to create a mechanism in West Bengal which will be a coalition of empowered local power structures, influencers, and community leaders to solve air pollution.
Vinay Jaju, MD SwitchON Foundation said, “There is a need for stringent implementation of the City Clean Air Policy bringing together different stakeholders of the city. Change is only possible through collaboration, engagement and communication.”
A study was launched by SwitchON Foundation on the NCAP status in Howrah. As per WBPCB, the NCAP tracker records higher trends of pollutants (PM2.5 and PM10) in winter months as compared to summer and monsoon months. Howrah is a heavily polluted industrial area with numerous foundries, rolling mills, metalworking and garment factories, and ceramics factories which are major contributors to air pollution in Howrah. The plant uses boilers and furnaces that are not regularly checked which leads to significant emissions.
The group also discussed the current status of the Clean Air Action Plan for Howrah under NCAP (National Clean Air Action Program)
- The Central government has released a total of ₹597.6 crores for the development of NCAP in West Bengal during 2021-2022, where ₹3.2 crores are solely reserved for Howrah (PRANA, CPCB, 2022).
- ₹19 crores have been used by the state government in aid until June 2022 (Press Information Bureau, 2022).
Commenting on the initiative, Dr. Sitaram Prasad Panda, Scientist, Botanical Survey of India who was one of the dignitaries in the program said, “SwitchON Foundation is doing a praise-worthy job by creating a city chapter where we can come together to find innovative solutions and take concrete actions to improve air quality and protect public health. We are committed to supporting this effort and working with all stakeholders to create a cleaner, healthier, and more sustainable future for all citizens.”
The objective behind the Bengal CAN City Chapter Meet was to engage different stakeholders and work together in partnership mode towards a sustainable society. This meet aims to develop a real time communication channel for integrating various responses from different stakeholders for rapid Action Response during crisis hours- including information dissemination plans on social media about pollution levels, contact details of control rooms and enabling reporting.
More than 25 organizations came together for the City Chapter meet. Other dignitaries like Prof. Sucheta Das, Shibpur Dinobundhoo Institution College and Mr. Samrat Kundu, Ex – Councilor, Howrah Municipal Corporation were also present in the meet. Leading NGOs like Howrah Navoday Seva Niketan, Design India Foundation, Alhadi Drawing School etc. attended the meet. The organizations discussed and debated on the City’s Clean Air Policy and Waste management and came up with an Annual Action Plan.
Mr. Bimal Pal, Secretary, Howrah Navoday Seva Niketan said, “As partners, we believe that by collaborating with SwitchON Foundation we can pool our resources and expertise, and make a real difference in improving the air quality and protecting public health.”
Media Dossier
Contact: Vinay Jaju | M: +91 9331178105 | Email: VJ@SwitchON.org.in
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