Congress Demands NCAP Overhaul After Study Finds Chronic PM2.5 in Nearly Half of Towns

Overview

• Citing a CREA satellite analysis, Congress says 1,787 of 4,041 statutory towns had annual PM2.5 above India’s standard across 2019–2024, excluding 2020.
• The party contends the NCAP covers only 130 cities—about 4% of chronically polluted towns—with gaps such as 28 cities lacking continuous monitoring.
• Of the 102 NCAP cities with monitors, 100 reported very high PM10 levels, which Congress cites as evidence of weak implementation.
• Congress urges a legal and standards reset, including revising the 1981 Air Act and 2009 NAAQS and making PM2.5 the primary performance metric with legal backing for NCAP.
• The proposals seek funding lifted from roughly Rs 10,500 crore to Rs 25,000 crore to expand coverage to 1,000 towns and call for coal plants to install FGD units by end-2026, while alleging the government has downplayed health risks and noting no detailed official response.