Platform to unite clean air activists pan India

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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 ‘demand for clean air', 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 disposal - the India Clean Air Connect (ICAC) platform.

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Supported by the India Climate Collaborative and Asar Social Impact Advisors, the initiative designed by Bengaluru-based Sensing Local is a dynamic, community-centric 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 country.

The residents of Mahul - an area declared ‘unfit for human habitation' by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) in 2015 - finally 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 area - SeaLord Containers Ltd, Aegis Logistics Ltd, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd - to collectively pay a fine of Rs286.2 crore for the damage caused by ‘volatile organic compounds' 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 platform.

Speaking with mid-day Mahulkar said, "There is so much data all over the internet. However, as an individual citizen, it is very difficult to verify how much of it is authentic and genuine. When the battle started, my father Dayaram and three others - Mohan Mhatre, Charudatt Koli and Dattaram Koli - had no direct information handy to aid their battle. They had to do so much running around… they spent years collecting information, data etc. If there is such a portal or website it will make things much easier for us. I am glad that such a portal has been launched. If it is indeed as claimed, it will benefit many."

Air pollution is one of the greatest threats to public health in India, accounting for nearly one-third of the total annual deaths in the country. Nearly 70 per cent of the top 50 most polluted cities in the world are in India; additionally, most Indian cities consistently do not meet World Health Organization (WHO) air quality standards, putting much of the country's population at risk.

Retired Mumbai Police ACP Dattatray Khot and his daughters have for years been working and doing research on the issue of vehicles idling at traffic signals. "We have proposed to have a parallel signal light when the signal turns red (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 then switch them on during the buffer time before the red light changes to green," Khot explained his suggestion, asserting that research indicates that vehicle idling at signals causes more air pollution than moving cars.

"If our efforts and other initiatives of many who have been working towards achieving clean air are available on the portal for peoples reference pan India and even globally, it will be of great support to everyone demanding clean air," 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 system-level action is currently missing in the air quality domain.

Elaborating on the efforts Ankit Bhargava, co-founder at Sensing Local said, "ICAC 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 efforts." According to Bhargava, the platform serves to aggregate knowledge, data and opportunities to foster a shared resource pool that facilitates peer learning and aligns efforts.
About the ICAC database

With 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 pollution. The platform provides stakeholders with avenues to collaborate across the ecosystem, align goals and coordinate action across the country. The platform also serves as a hub for communication, knowledge-sharing and learning, and stakeholder engagement. It offers pertinent information on events, employment opportunities, funding possibilities, and resource portals.

Specifically, ICAC aims to break the siloed nature of sectors and stakeholders within the air quality domain, which arises due to organisational structures, limited communication, and differing priorities. Collective action is imperative as air quality challenges are complex, interconnected, and transboundary, necessitating a holistic approach.

"Air pollution is a complex challenge that requires collective action from all stakeholders to bridge key gaps and promote ecosystem-wide collaborations, regional partnerships, and innovative solutions, wherein ICAC plays a pivotal role. This groundbreaking website brings together diverse air quality actors, amplifying their efforts and fostering a thriving ecosystem," said Brikesh Singh, chief of communications and engagement at Asar.

A critical function of the ICAC is also to synthesise information on air quality in India. 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 micro-action 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 domain which can aid in enabling more strategic engagement.

Additionally, 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. "Recognising 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 like-minded stakeholders to partner with," Nath said.

The platform aims to harness this potential of collaborative systems for clean air in India, inviting all stakeholders working in the air quality domain to join, collaborate and collectively work towards a cleaner and healthier future for all.