The World Bank has approved financing a critical programme for Uttar Pradesh to help improve air quality for millions of people, with clean air benefits spilling over to other states.
Along with UP, the World Bank Board has approved a similar financial programme for Haryana, too. These programmes will also aim at further increasing the attractiveness of both states as business destinations and engines of job creation.
“Air pollution is causing severe health impacts, loss of productivity, and reduced quality of life across South Asia,” said Paul Procee, Acting Country Director, World Bank India.
“These operations in Haryana and Uttar Pradesh represent the first airshed-based, multi-sectoral programmes undertaken by state governments in India to tackle the complex challenge of reducing air pollution. The programmes will also demonstrate how air quality initiatives can increase productivity and create green jobs, especially for youth and women.”
According to a WB press release on Thursday, the Uttar Pradesh Clean Air Management Program (UPCAMP) (USD 299.66 million) will build on the UP Government’s Clean Air Plan by investing in key sectors such as transport, agriculture, and industry to improve air quality for its people.
The programme will help 3.9 million households gain access to clean cooking. It will also encourage people to use clean transport by introducing 15,000 electric three-wheelers and 500 electric buses in the cities of Lucknow, Kanpur, Varanasi, and Gorakhpur. The project will support the UP government’s plans to provide incentives to replace 13,500 polluting heavy-duty vehicles with lower-emitting vehicles.
“By adopting an airshed approach—rather than city-level solutions—Uttar Pradesh aims to reduce air pollution faster and at a lower cost by collaborating with other states to control transboundary emissions,” said Ana Luisa Lima and Farah Zahir, the task team leaders of UPCAMP.
“Among its initiatives, the Programme will incentivise farmers to adopt good practices to improve fertiliser use efficiency and manage livestock waste. It will also help MSMEs transition to cleaner technologies and promote e-mobility in urban centres.”