GHMC reviews air quality measures in city NCAP meeting

The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) outlined a set of measures to curb air pollution in the city, at a city-level monitoring and implementation committee meeting held on Friday under the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP).

The key measures, among them, include expanding the TGSRTC electric bus fleet on high-pollution routes, promoting electric three-wheelers, tightening pollution-under-control compliance for older vehicles and improving pedestrian infrastructure through additional foot-over-bridges and pelican signals.

Citizens should also be encouraged to hand over Construction & Demolition (C&D) waste at a nominal charge and use recycled construction materials.

The meeting chaired by Additional Commissioner C.N. Raghu Prasad here saw the attendance of senior officials from the three traffic police commissionerates, the State Pollution Control Board, TGSRTC, HMRL, Civil Supplies, Transport Department, TGIIC, EPTRI, CPCB-NCAP and other departments.

The meeting focussed on gathering actionable input from all stakeholders and drawing a specific city action plan. The discussions covered issues of road dust suppression, vehicular emission control, improved industrial oversight, enhanced C&D waste management systems, expansion of urban green cover and real-time monitoring at major construction sites.

Mr. Raghu Prasad stressed the urgent need for coordinated efforts and strict enforcement on the ground to achieve measurable reductions in pollution. Environmental scientists Prasad Dasari and N. Jayasri presented a detailed hotspot analysis, identifying critical stretches including the Punjagutta-Patancheru industrial corridor, the Charminar-Nampally heritage zone, the Hi-Tech City transit corridor and the MGBS-Secunderabad stretch. They recommended both immediate and long-term interventions supported through GHMC and NCAP funding.

The meeting also said that citizens must be encouraged to utilise authorised agencies for C&D waste disposal. GHMC’s waste lifting services can be availed via toll free numbers 1800-120-1159 and 1800-203-0033.