As INTRODUCED IN LOK SABHA

Bill No. 247 of 2018

THE AIR (PREVENTION AND CONTROL OF POLLUTION)

AMENDMENT BILL, 2018
By

DR. PRABHAS KUMAR SINGH, M.P.

A

BILL
further to amend the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Sixty-ninth Year of the Republic of India as
follows:—
1. (1) This Act may be called the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Amendment Short title and
Act, 2018. commencement.

5 (2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, appoint.
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Insertion of 2. After section 28 of the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981, the 14 of 1981.
new section following section shall be inserted, namely:—
28A.
Monitoring “28A. (1) The Central Government shall install and commission Continuous
Stations and Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Stations (hereinafter referred to as CAAQM Stations)
Action Plan. by August 15, 2022 in all cities across the country having population of more than 5
one lakh according to the latest Census and in such industrial or mining towns as the
respective State Governments may, specify.
(2) The Central Government may, after consultation with the Central Board, by
notification in the Official Gazette, declare technical specifications for CAAQM Stations.
(3) It shall be the responsibility of every urban local body of cities or towns having 10
CAAQM Station to prepare a region-specific Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) based
on Air Quality Index (AQI) before such date as may be notified by the State Government.”.
 STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
According to the WHO, Global Ambient Air Quality Database (2018), the rank of India
is fourteenth amongst the world’s twenty most polluted cities in terms of PM 2.5
concentrations. Also, environmental health in India is the worst amongst one hundred eighty
nations according to the 2018 Environmental Performance Index (EPI).
This rising pollution of air has been due to vehicular emissions, industrial emissions,
construction activities, burning crop stubble and biomass, etc.
As air quality has declined, the risk of stroke, heart disease, lung cancer, and chronic
and acute respiratory diseases, including asthma, has increased among the citizens. Smog
has become a daily phenomenon in several Indian cities, causing sore throat, irritation in
eyes, dizziness. Lakhs of Indian succumb to premature deaths due to air pollution annually.
The deteriorated quality of air has resulted in a situation of undeclared public health
emergency.
Protecting citizens from the pangs of air pollution is both a moral and legal obligation
of the Government. Our Constitution provides that the State shall endeavour to improve
public health (article 47) and to protect and improve the environment (article 48A). In various
cases, the Supreme Court has also observed that Right to Life under article 21 includes Right
to Pollution Free Air.
However, to address the problem of air pullution, its real-time monitoring is the crucial
first step. Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring (CAAQM) Stations measure air
pollutants and generate Air Quality Index (AQI). AQI is useful for:—
(i) general public to know air quality in a simplified way;
(ii) policy makers and politicians to invoke quick actions;
(iii) decision makers to know the trend of events and to chalk out corrective
pollution control strategies; and
(iv) government officials to study the impact of regulatory actions.
At present, there are around one hundred thirty CAAQM Stations in India spread
across seventy cities. There is an urgent need to expand its coverage to all major cities and
industrial and mining towns of India.
Second logical step should be to take specific actions for mitigation in response to the
AQI, according to a region-specific Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP). GRAP may be
given more teeth by introducing, in the rules, some form of green-tax on emissions from
polluting entities like industries, power plants, etc.
Hence this Bill.

NEW DELHI; PRABHAS KUMAR SINGH

November 20, 2018.

3
 FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Clause 2 of the Bill provides that the Central Government shall instal and commission
Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Stations in all cities across the country having
population of more than one lakh and in such industrial or mining towns as the respective
State Governments may specify. The Bill, therefore, if enacted would involve expenditure
from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is likely to involve an annual recurring expenditure of
about rupees one hundred crore from the Consolidated Fund of India.
A non-recurring expenditure of about rupees fifty crore is also likely to be involved.

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 LOK SABHA

————

BILL

further to amend the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981.

————

(Dr. Prabhas Kumar Singh, M.P.)

MGIPMRND—2074LS(S3)—20-12-2018.