Greens in Sambhajinagar want clean air measures in election manifestos

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: A group of environmentally conscious residents of Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar have appealed to political parties to include concrete measures for clean air and environmental protection in their municipal election manifestos, citing the serious consequences of air pollution on public health.United under the umbrella organisation, ‘We, The Environmentalists (Aamhi Paryavaranpremi)', the group highlighted multiple alleged civic failures that it said contributed to deteriorating air quality in the city."Open burning of garbage, inadequate public transport, absence of timers at traffic signals, unchecked pollution from crematoriums, violations of construction norms, and illegal sale of parking spaces leading to chronic traffic congestion are some of the failures that are deteriorating the air quality," organisation convener Rupesh Kalantri said.Citing data available with the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), the organisation claimed that particulate matter levels (PM2.5 and PM10) in the city remain in the "poor" category for nearly 200 to 290 days a year. The group also said data from one of the three air quality monitoring stations is not being received regularly, raising questions about transparency and monitoring."We wrote to various political parties and are seeking meetings with poll candidates to press for policy commitments. Air pollution is no longer just an environmental issue, but a major public health crisis. Children, senior citizens, outdoor workers, street vendors, and economically weaker sections are the worst affected," activist Mahendra Zagade said.When contacted, Shiv Sena district president Rajendra Janjal said his party is committed to improving the air quality in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar. "Effective public transport could address multiple air quality-related issues. We will ensure the city gets the best public transport in the days to come," he said. Politicians of some of the other parties also expressed similar commitment.