Getting clean air back

Air pollution can be brought down to near permissible levels within five years with the use of the right regulatory and policy instruments

The good news is that finally there is a National Clean Air Program to mitigate the real health crisis that air pollution is causing. The task is daunting. All new programs need substantial funds for the subsidies and grants that are the normal instruments of implementation. The fiscal deficit will, however, be higher in the coming financial year and the new government would need to again move towards fiscal rectitude. The provision of large budgetary resources for clean air may, therefore, be difficult. So the challenge would be to make a major dent without much money. Fortunately, there are some