Mumbai: Clean air activists unite!

For over 13 years now Devrram Mahulkar 33 along with his father Dayaram and a few others have been leading a fight for their villages of Mahul Koliwada and Ambapada over a lsquodemand for clean airrsquo running from pillar to post collecting information about norms regulations and legal procedures to support their battle However citizens like Mahulkar NGOs and even researchers battling to curb escalating air pollution in their cities now have a powerful resource and database at their disposalmdashthe India Clean Air Connect ICAC platformSupported by the India Climate Collaborative and Asar Social Impact Advisors the initiative designed by Bengalurubased Sensing Local is a dynamic communitycentric digital resource hub for air quality stakeholders including citizens which aims to facilitate collaborative action in the air quality domain to check air pollution in the countryThe residents of Mahulmdashan area declared lsquounfit for human habitationrsquo by the National Green Tribunal NGT in 2015mdashfinally got a reprieve in the form of an NGT order in August 2020 Their tenacious efforts finally paid off when the NGT directed four firms in the areamdashSeaLord Containers Ltd Aegis Logistics Ltd Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltdmdashto collectively pay a fine of Rs 2862 crore for the damage caused by lsquovolatile organic compoundsrsquo emitted by their activities Case studies like Mahul past court cases government notifications and many such resources including air quality data can now be easily accessed by citizens organisations and even researchers on the ICAC platformSpeaking with midday Mahulkar said ldquoThere is so much data all over the internet but it is very difficult to verify how much of it is authentic When the battle started my father Dayaram and three othersmdashMohan Mhatre Charudatt Koli and Dattaram Kolimdashhad no direct information to aid their battle They had to spend years collecting information data etc If there is such a portal it will make things much easier I am glad the portal is launchedrdquoAir pollution accounts for nearly onethird of the total annual deaths in india Nearly 70 per cent of the top 50 most polluted cities in the world are in India additionally most Indian cities do not meet WHO air quality standards putting much of the countryrsquos population at riskPlease add breaker hereRetired Mumbai Police ACP Dattatray Khot and his daughters have for years done research on the issue of vehicles idling at traffic signals ldquoWe have proposed to have a parallel signal light at signals as long as 100 seconds With a cushion time of five seconds people can switch off their vehicle engines when the parallel light is on and the signal turns red and then switch them on during the buffer time before light changes to greenrdquo Khot explained asserting that research shows that vehicle idling at signals cause more pollution than moving carsldquoIf data on initiatives to achieve clean air is available for peoples reference panIndia and even globally it will be of great supportrdquo he added Air pollution and climate change are closely interlinked While a number of solutions to air pollution have been implemented addressing the issue comprehensively requires a variety of stakeholders policymakers citizens boundary organisations and so on to work collaboratively on solutions Studies suggest that such systemlevel action is currently missing in the air quality domainElaborating on the efforts Ankit Bhargava cofounder at Sensing Local said ldquoICAC emerged from the urgent need recognised by air quality organisations to unite stakeholders bridge knowledge disparities and monitor sectoral and regional advancements to minimise redundancies or avoid duplication of effortsrdquo According to Bhargava the platform serves to aggregate knowledge data and opportunities to foster a shared resource pool that facilitates peer learning and aligns effortsAbout the ICAC databaseWith a database of more than 350 air quality actors in over 100 cities and 16 countries as well as 74 international and national sources of data and knowledge and over 70 networks in the ecosystem the ICAC platform brings together organisations individuals and networks working on air quality in India across sectors and geographies for collective action on air pollutionICAC especially aims to break the siloed nature of sectors and stakeholders in the air quality domain ldquoAir pollution is a complex challenge that requires collective action from all stakeholders to bridge key gaps and promote ecosystemwide collaborations regional partnerships and innovative solutions where ICAC plays a pivotal rolerdquo said Brikesh Singh chief of communications and engagement at AsarA critical function of the ICAC is also to synthesise information The platform features essential government notifications relevant air quality data retrieved from public sources and a repository of past and present reports on air pollution Users can access city and microaction plans under the National Clean Air Programme NCAP as well as a comprehensive list of resource portals that present air quality data and knowledge from and on India The platform also provides updates on major online and offline events related to air quality and job opportunities in the domainAdditionally ICAC offers a critical opportunity to leverage philanthropic capital as well According to India Climate Collaborative CEO Shloka Nath the air quality ecosystem in India is fragmented and severely underfunded with funding limited to specific geographies and organisations ldquoRecognising this reality the ICAC platform adopts an ecosystem lens vital for effective clean air action in India The platform can serve as a common space for funders to engage with a variety of air quality actors understand ecosystem priorities based on evidence and find likeminded stakeholders to partner withrdquo Nath said