Despite allocation of funds under National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) by the Central Government, Nagpur city has failed to achieve primary benchmark of annual average of particulate matter (PM10) concentration of below 60 µg/m³ constantly since 2018. In the launching year of NCAP in 2018, Nagpur had 100 µg/m³ of PM10 concentration level which was reduced thereafter every year but the city has failed to achieve the target of 60 µg/m³ till date. In 2025-26, annual concentration was highest with 100 µg/m³. Whereas, in 2018-19 annual concentration was 93 µg/m³, a drop by 7 µg/m³. The mitigation measures taken by Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) helped reduce PM10 level every year after 2018 till 2023. As per data available on NCAP Prana Portal, the annual concentration in 2019-20 was 80 µg/m³, whereas in 2020-21 and 2021-22 the PM10 level dropped upto 68 µg/m³, lowest since the launch of NCAP. The huge drop should be also credited to the lockdown due to Covid-19 pandemic when all construction projects and vehicular movements on roads were restricted.

 

Post-pandemic in 2022-23, annual PM10 concentration shot up by 97 µg/m³ which was a huge rise in just one year. The condition remained the same in 2023-24 as the concentration was reported 94 µg/m³ and in 2024-25 it was 93 µg/m³. Whereas, after eight years of implementation of NCAP, annual PM10 concentration of Nagpur city last year (2025-26) touched 100 µg/m³. As per NCAP portal, Ministry of Environment Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) released a total fund of Rs 214.76 crore since 2018 in which the civic authority utilised only Rs 97.64 crore fund for air pollution mitigation in Nagpur city. In 2020-21, the Centre released highest Rs 66 crore for Nagpur under NCAP whereas no fund was utilised by NMC that year. Again next year the Centre released Rs 40.35 crore to Nagpur, in which only Rs 6.46 crore fund was utilised. In the name of air pollution mitigation, NMC recently announced its expansion plan of its mechanised sanitation fleet by procuring 12 road sweeping machines and 4 chain crawler excavators (Poclain machines).

 

According to NMC, the civic body is focusing on infrastructure upgrades, waste management, and public awareness to match the requirements of NCAP. Work orders worth Rs 5.21 crore were issued by NMC to install air pollution control systems at three major crematoria—Mokshadham, Manewada, and Gangabai—financed via NCAP and 15th Finance Commission. Along with this, work orders have been issued for a new organic compost plant to process solid waste and reduce open garbage burning in the city. Despite all these efforts, NCAP portal is showing a different picture of fund utilisation and mitigation of air pollution in Nagpur city.