Realising the need to provide better air quality levels for the city and its citizens, the administrative leadership of Dehradun took a proactive role in successfully conducting a capacity building workshop on air pollution. The workshop was jointly organised by Uttarakhand Environment Protection & Pollution Control Board (UEPPCB), Clean Air Asia and SDC Foundation. Clean Air Asia (CAA) is a global organisation that works towards clean air management in around 1,000 cities across Asia.
The outcome of the first day of the workshop was an important one – an urgent need to monitor and collect data about the city’s air quality. It was agreed upon that particulate matter (PM2.5) will be monitored at specific locations in the city. These stations will monitor hourly change in the level of the particular matter, through which weekly and monthly data can be calculated.
A roundtable dialogue was organised on the second and concluding day of the workshop. Vasundhara Bhojvaid, India Program Manager, Air Quality, steered the discussion, laying down the format for an action plan. With active discussion from UEPPCB’s Mr. Subudhi, DM Murugesan, MDDA and Nagar Nigam representatives, a plan of action was charted out, keeping in mind short-term, medium-term and long-term goals. It was agreed that better and more real-time data was needed to understand air pollution better, as well as a breakup of pollutants – vehicular pollution, dust and debris from construction, and garbage burning.
The DM came forward to say that the Public Works Department (PWD) will have to ensure that construction sites are covered from all sides to prevent dust particles from escaping in the atmosphere. He also said the administration will be strict about not giving permission to hold events unless the organizers give an undertaking that they will clean up and won’t burn garbage. Areas will also be marked to dump debris that is generated from construction in the city, he said.
The discussion also veered towards devising a strong communication strategy for data sharing with the public, along with raising awareness among the citizens of the city about the impact of pollution on health and ways to make the city cleaner and greener.
The discussion witnessed an amazing exchange of ideas, thoughts, and suggestions among the stakeholders. As a result, the draft of the city air action plan was prepared. We are extremely thankful to Mr. S.P. Subudhi, Member Secretary of UEPPCB and his entire team for constantly encouraging us to organise this event and continued to lead from the front. We would also like to extend our gratitude to the District Magistrate, Mr. S.A. Murugesan, Nagar Nigam Dehradun, Mussoorie Dehradun Development Authority (MDDA), State Transport Department, Department of Medical Health & Family Welfare Uttarakhand and the Uttarakhand Forest Department.
We also acknowledge the participation of UNDP, UPES, DIT University and the Indian Institute of Petroleum, Dehradun.
