India Needs To Train 10 Lakh People In Air Quality Management: Report

New Delhi: India needs to train at least 10 lakh people in the next five years for air quality management, according to a new report, which also says around 50,000 jobs could be created in the sector. The report has been prepared by the International Forum for Environment, Sustainability & Technology (iForest) with the support of the World Bank Group. It highlights the need of a national-level programme to develop the capacity of all stakeholders – cities, state and central government agencies, private sector, NGOs and media — to effectively tackle the problem of air pollution.

Our report shows that we need to train at least 1 million (10 lakh) people over the next five years for air quality management. This will also create tens of thousands of new jobs in the public and private sector to plan, monitor, mitigate, and control air pollutants, said Chandra Bhushan, the CEO of iFOREST and the lead author of the report.

Also Read: Barely Any Difference In PM2.5 Trends Among Cities Covered In National Clean Air Programme And Those Outside It: Report

He said the report is the first attempt of its kind to map the environmental sector in the country.

The agencies, organisations and industries working in the air quality management sector include ministries and departments of the government, state pollution control boards, urban local bodies, air polluting industries, and air pollution control industries. The report said there are at least 2.8 lakh organisations and industries across the country which require personnel for air quality management.

It has identified 42 specific job roles that is required to control air pollution in the country — from municipal workers involved in dust control and construction and demolition waste management to specialists in transport planning, air quality modelling and forecasting.

The report says a total of 2.2 million jobs are required to manage air pollution in the country. A large number these jobs, about 1.6 million, already exit.

However, many of them have never been trained to manage air quality, such as the municipal workers and PUC (pollution under check) operators, who can be at the frontline, it says.

There is a need to employ thousands of people to meet the requirements of growing number of industries, ULBs, consultancy and government, it said.

Also Read: Over 99% Of India’s Population Breathes Air That Exceeds WHO’s PM2.5 Guidelines: Report

The report estimates that air quality management sector requires at least 50,000 new jobs, ranging from researchers and analysts to air quality supervisors in ULBs (Urban Local Bodies) and regulators in pollution control boards.

The report found there is no structured capacity building programme in the air quality management sector and recommended a national programme to train about a million workers, operators and professionals over the next five years.

“A major challenge in the air quality management sector in India is that the people presently working in the sector have not been trained and a large number of jobs that are required do not exist”, said Chandra Bhushan.

Air pollution is an environmental issue, but we must also see its management as an opportunity to create new jobs and build a green economy. While a lot of the existing jobs lead to the destruction of the environment, we now have to start creating jobs to protect the environment. Our report shows the vast opportunity that exists in developing the environment sector as a vibrant economic sector, he stressed.

Also Read: Air Pollution Going To Be A Big Disaster For Health, Warn Experts

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

NDTV – Dettol have been working towards a clean and healthy India since 2014 via the Banega Swachh India initiative, which is helmed by Campaign Ambassador Amitabh Bachchan. The campaign aims to highlight the inter-dependency of humans and the environment, and of humans on one another with the focus on One Health, One Planet, One Future – Leaving No One Behind. It stresses on the need to take care of, and consider, everyone’s health in India – especially vulnerable communities – the LGBTQ population, indigenous people, India’s different tribes, ethnic and linguistic minorities, people with disabilities, migrants, geographically remote populations, gender and sexual minorities. In wake of the current COVID-19 pandemic, the need for WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) is reaffirmed as handwashing is one of the ways to prevent Coronavirus infection and other diseases. The campaign will continue to raise awareness on the same along with focussing on the importance of nutrition and healthcare for women and children, fight malnutrition, mental wellbeing, self care, science and health, adolescent health & gender awareness. Along with the health of people, the campaign has realised the need to also take care of the health of the eco-system. Our environment is fragile due to human activity, which is not only over-exploiting available resources, but also generating immense pollution as a result of using and extracting those resources. The imbalance has also led to immense biodiversity loss that has caused one of the biggest threats to human survival – climate change. It has now been described as a “code red for humanity.” The campaign will continue to cover issues like air pollution, waste management, plastic ban, manual scavenging and sanitation workers and menstrual hygiene. Banega Swasth India will also be taking forward the dream of Swasth Bharat, the campaign feels that only a Swachh or clean India where toilets are used and open defecation free (ODF) status achieved as part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014, can eradicate diseases like diahorrea and the country can become a Swasth or healthy India.

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