For India’s new Clean Air commission to succeed, it must have time-bound, measurable goals

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Thursday’s ordinance setting up a Commission for Air Quality Management in National Capital Region and Adjoining Areas is a definitive step in the right direction to cleaning North India’s filthy air. This isn’t just because it replaces a tired, 22-year old empowered authority that never used its teeth effectively. For the first time, the Union government has formally acknowledged air pollution as a serious problem that needs to be solved urgently by a centralised authority.

However, critical to the effectiveness of the new “democratically-monitored” 18-member commission
will be the person appointed to head it. It will need a dynamic, decisive leader. This will determine whether it will end up as yet another body of bureaucracts accountable to its political masters instead of being responsible for achieving measurable, time-bound goals.

It can be called a success only if it succeeds in bringing pollution down, first to below national limits and then to below international limits as set by the World Health Organisation.

The selection committee, which includes four ministers and the Cabinet Secretary, needs to keep this in mind, even though the terms already seem to have limited the choice to current or retired bureaucrats. The devil lies in the details – and implementation.

A war footing

The gazette notification...

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