SYLLABUS

GS-3: Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation.

Context: Recently, on the occasion of Swachh Vayu Diwas 2026 (7th September), the 5th Swachh Vayu Sarvekshan Awards were presented, recognising the best-performing cities and wards for their efforts towards improving air quality under the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP).

More on the News

• 130 NCAP cities participated in the 2026 assessment across three population-based categories: above 10 lakh, 3–10 lakh and below 3 lakh. 

• The ward-level assessment covered more than 7,400 wards, strengthening the bottom-up approach to air-quality management. 

• Besides 10 national-level ward awards, 69 wards from 23 States/UTs—three from each—were also recognised at the State/UT level. 

Understanding Swachh Vayu Sarvekshan

• Nature: Swachh Vayu Sarvekshan is an annual assessment of 130 cities under NCAP, launched by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) in 2022–23. It promotes healthy competition, innovation and accelerated action among cities to improve air quality. 

• Categories: Cities are grouped according to population into Category I (>10 lakh), Category II (3–10 lakh) and Category III (<3 lakh). 

• Assessment Parameters: The framework evaluates measures related to road dust, solid waste management, vehicular emissions, industrial pollution, C&D waste, other emissions such as DG sets and commercial establishments, and IEC activities. 

• Evaluation Process: Cities undertake self-assessment, followed by scrutiny by the State-level Monitoring Committee, evaluation by CPCB, and field verification by independent committees before final ranking. 

• Key Distinction: The Sarvekshan primarily evaluates air-pollution mitigation and management efforts, rather than ranking cities solely on ambient air quality.

Key Findings of Swachh Vayu Sarvekshan 2026 

1. City Rankings

2. National Ward Rankings

• Category I (>30,000 population): Lucknow Ward 70 – 1st; Bhopal Ward 60 – 2nd; Nashik Ward 7 – 3rd. 

• Category II (10,000–30,000): Bhubaneswar Wards 36 and 30 – joint 1st; Vijayawada Ward 60 – 2nd; Allahabad Ward 31 – 3rd. 

• Category III (<10,000): Rourkela Ward 13 – 1st; Nalgonda Ward 16 – 2nd; Nagaon Ward 8 – 3rd. 

3. NCAP Outcomes

• 108 of 130 cities recorded improvement in PM10 levels in FY 2025–26 compared with the 2017–18 baseline. 

• 72 cities achieved more than 20% reduction, while 26 cities recorded reductions exceeding 40%. 

• 14 cities met NAAQS for PM10 in FY 2025–26, compared with 6 cities in 2017–18. 

• Under NCAP, ₹16,423.55 crore was provided to 130 cities during FY 2019–20 to FY 2025–26, of which ₹11,575.54 crore (70.5%) has been reported as utilised through the PRANA portal.

About the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP)

• Launch & Coverage: Launched in January 2019, NCAP is a multi-sectoral initiative covering 130 cities across 24 States/UTs, involving Central and State Governments, ULBs and other stakeholders. 

• Targets: Its original target was a 20–30% reduction in PM10 concentration by 2024–25 from the 2017–18 baseline, subsequently revised to up to 40% reduction or achievement of the NAAQS level of 60 µg/m³ by 2025–26. 

• Implementation: City-specific Clean Air Action Plans address major sources such as road/soil dust, vehicular emissions, waste burning, C&D activities and greening, while State Action Plans address industrial pollution through cleaner fuels and technologies. 

• Funding: Air-quality performance-linked funding is channelled through the XV Finance Commission Million-Plus Cities Challenge Fund (48 million-plus cities) and the Central Sector Scheme ‘Control of Pollution’ (82 non-attainment cities). 

• Monitoring: PRANA (Portal for Regulation of Air-pollution in Non-Attainment cities) tracks the physical and financial progress of city Clean Air Action Plans and disseminates information on NCAP implementation. 

About Swachh Vayu Diwas

• International origin: The United Nations General Assembly designated 7 September as the International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies in 2019, with the objective of raising awareness about air pollution and promoting action to improve air quality. 

• India's observance: India observes the day as “Swachh Vayu Diwas”, linking the global clean-air campaign with India's efforts to combat air pollution.