World Bank is ready to help West Bengal government For tackle air pollution

Dipendu Chowdhury

This is too difficult to place my thought or views on environment in the short term in English version, because I am not from convent school or college. But being a ‘Shramajibi Journalist’ I am also responsible for our bright Nation for polluted air free community, my State of ‘Egie Bangla’ (advanced Bengal) and also I have great feelings our neighbour country which means I am responsible to say for Global environment.  

It’s truth that Kolkata city of cultural heritage. City of Joy of West Bengal of India’s environment health is not good. According to news sources, The World Bank is going to help the West Bengal government for tackle air pollution.  I would like to put few information, as follows, the ‘Uthapatal’ (unparallel) cyclone was ‘Aayla’ on 2009, we have had been faced this disaster. This unknown storm has had been destroyed topographical sky of the Bengal of ‘Sundarban’ area. There approximately 15 Lakh citizen shifted their permanent address from Sundarban to different districts of the Bengal from India. Due to global environment, expulsion of Green house Gas percentage is huge in Kolkata compare with 40 major city of the Globe. While air pollution in Kolkata is not a recent phenomenon, PM 2.5 and 10 levels in the city surpassing Delhi’s infamous standards made national headlines in the last couple of months.

According to Dr, Kalyan Rudra Chairman of West Bengal pollution control Board, (Department of Environment, Govt of West Bengal) statement on 28^th February at Tackling Kolkata’s Rising Air pollution an Experts and Media Discussion by Climate Trends and Legal Initiative for forest and Environment (LIFE). Dr. Rudra said,    ‘’government are going to installed low cost air pollution monitoring devices across in the city, more 5 polluted area have been located and enlisted, which are Birla IT, Jadavpur Cultivation of science, Rabindra Saravar, Scince city, AT and Salt Lake. ‘’ He added more that, we have 18 Waste Management plant in different places in the city under the KMC area. According to Climate Trends information, the groups installed low cost monitoring devices across 4 polluted junctions in the city- at Don Bosco, Park Circus, and Dunlop Crossing. Naryana Hospital and Silver Spring apartment near EM Bypass— to analyse the exposure levels of particulate in the city. Data from January 1^st till February 24^th recorded zero ‘good’ air quality days in Kolkata, and one day of ‘Satisfactory’ air across all 4 monitors. While Dunlop Crossing ranged from ‘’very poor’’ to ‘’severe’’ on the Air Quality Index the area around Don Bosco school and EM Bypass ranged between ‘’poor’’ and ‘’severe’’, and levels around Narayana hospital.

Aarti Khosla, Director, Climate Trends said during the workshop on 28^th February, ‘’Only 57 cities currently have real time monitoring stations in the country, rest are manual that don’t make date easily accessible for public consumption. While low cost monitors are not a replacement for the regulatory grade CPCB and state PCB monitors, these devices have helped democratise the data to start a public debate on rising threat of air pollution in many cities in India, and in Kolkata as well.’’ 

New Delhi based Climate Trends recently added more report on their report card.  Air pollution today has truly become menace, which we simply can’t ignore anymore. There is a dire need for action today, with over 99% of India’s population is breathing air that is much worse than WHO or even Indian Standards and 14 of the world’s  15 most polluted cities are in India. Clearly, we are headed towards a health epidemic. According to an Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)-led report, household air pollution was responsible for 5% of the total disease burden in India 2016, and outdoor air pollution for 6%.      

 We can remember that earlier Press Information Bureau (PIB) of India reported govt of India’s stand on environment during the session of COP 24 with the headlines ‘Outcome of 24^th session of Conference of parties (COP) positive: India.

‘’India demonstrated the spirit of commitment and leadership during the COP-24 by reiterating its promise to implement the Paris Agreement in its spirit and act collectively to address climate change, India engaged positively and constructively in all the negotiations while protecting India’s key interests including recognition of different starting points of developed and developing countries; flexibilities for developing countries and consideration of principles including equity and Common but Differentiated Responsibilities and Respective Capabilities (CBDR-RC).’

   

We have valued documents about policy of govt of India on Environment, may be or may not be, but truth is that the facts when teen Climate activist Greta Thunberg tells Modi.

Huffpost news have written on 20 February that, Thunberg. A 15-year-old Swedish climate activist, had earlier said world leaders were behaving like children, about climate change.

‘Even as world leaders continue to deny the damage caused by climate change, 15-year-old Swedish climate change activist. Greta Thunberg, has been causing quite a storm with her powerful messages to world leaders.

She also had a message for Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

In a video by Brut India, Thunberg said,’ ‘’Dear Mr. Modi, you need to action now against the climate crisis. Not just talking about it because if you keep going on like this. Doing business as usual, and just talking about and bragging about the little victories, you are going to fail. And if you fail, you are going to be seen as one of the worst villains in human history in the future. And you don’t want that.’’

The Telegraph Calcutta published the news on March 3 with headlines ‘World Bank help hope for toxic air’ by Journalist Jayanta Basu. He has wrote, ‘Sumila Gulyani, World Bank’s programme leader for infrastructure and development, said a partnership was likely between the Bengal government and the World Bank. ‘’we are happy to work on air pollution if Bengal considers it a priority. Gulyani told Metro. ‘’The signs are...there is likelihood that Bengal and the World Bank would have a partnership. We are both interested, but we have to see what is on offer...what the Bengal government thinks about it.’’  

Presently Indian socio-political phenomenon extended for 17^th Lok Sabha election (parliamentary election) 2019 in the next month. Indian people were counting ‘Prahar’ for the formation of new Government. You can recite that it’s a world’s largest democratic election. In the meanwhile, the country’s already fragile environment has hit the common society, with Indian’s continuing to breathing the world’s most polluted air.

Moreover, Indian political parties need to take cognisance of the issue and outline their own time bound planning to measure to protect public health from ill effects of air pollution. Yes this time only National Congress is the only political party, added one agenda to tackling air pollution in the part Manifesto 2019.

In this connection, I would like to put my collective few words and lines about planning of govt of West Bengal on Air pollution. Few days ago I have met Janab Firhad Hakim, Mayor, Kolkata Municipal Corporation. He has said an exclusive interviews that, ‘’we have no capacity to plan for urban forest in Kolkata. Due to under construction of Metro Rail dust our city Air pollution has been gradually increased. We have plan ‘B’ to decorate our city of ‘Tilotamma’ Kolkata. We are going to plan with govt of West Bengal to build ‘Vertical Garden’ for more greenery and fresh Air for oxygen.’’

Added Story on Green Cricket

I think we have duty to ask to remember our beloved world famous Cricket captain Imran Khan from Pakistan. Presently he is a Prime Minister of Pakistan. So, a better tomorrow of the Globe ‘Cricket Duniya’ also have a major responsibility to arrange updated climate. There how many Cricket Stadium authorities are able to given green field for young cricketer in the world? Now maximum cricket stadium like covered ‘Jangal of Concrete’. I would like to refer Historian and cricket lover Ramchandra Guha, who have written on his book ‘A corner of A Foreign Field, The Indian History of a British Sport’, ‘’The first mention of cricket in India dates 1721, when British sailors played a match among themselves in the port of Cambay. ‘When my boat was lying for a fortnight  in one of the channels’, wrote one of the players, though the country was inhabited by the culeys, we every day diverted ourselves with playing cricket and to other Exercises, they would come and be spectators of...’’ (Page- 3)

Outside the Britain the first Cricket Club was in Calcutta. The Calcutta Cricket Club have had been established in 1792 under the British rule. Author Guha written more on his above book , ‘’....the club played in the ample Maidan that skirted and still skirts— Fort William, the ‘manly exercise of Cricket’ followed in the evenings by dinner and dances where the cricketers ‘might try their ability in another way.’’ (Page- 4)

Why I referred above book? Because that time on eighteenth century cricket in India was not commercial and Cricket ground was brink of the river Ganges for fresh air means oxygen. An exclusive interview Janab Firhad Hakim, Mayor, Kolkata Municipal Corporation, said, ‘’ Yes, I love cricket match. I have enjoyed the International cricket match at Australia, England, Newzealand. There have lots of green field stadium for fresh oxygen. India and Indian sub-continental countries stadium is like a ‘Jangal of Concrete’. We should arrange to rethink for a brink side open stadium for both cricketer, cricket lover and the audience.’’

Avishek Dalmia, Vice president of the Cricket association of Bengal (CAB) said, ‘’We are going to arrange solar power in the Eden Garden stadium. And we have also another plan to install waste management recycle plant to overcome air pollution in the field.’’