Artha Global in partnership with Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board (APPCB), organised a National Workshop on Clean Air Zones (CAZ) in Visakhapatnam on Nov 2, 2023. The event was attended by members from government, academia, industry and civil society. Transport for London (TfL) was a key knowledge partner in the workshop.
This National Workshop raised awareness about CAZs and formulate pathways to successful implementation by convening the support of government officials from all relevant departments and agencies, urban air quality experts, and policy think tanks. Over the past few years, multiple cities have piloted different CAZ approaches, with varying degrees of success. The Workshop provided a platform to hear from senior city/state leadership that have implemented CAZs in their geographies on key success factors for CAZ implementation.
A number of think-tanks have been working on different issues related to CAZs. These include issues on regulation, technology, data, finance, communications, and stakeholder engagement. The Workshop brought together leading think-tanks to share their views on key strategies and levers for CAZ implementation.
Shakti Sustainable Energy Foundation was invited to participate in the Workshop. “Cities are important drivers for individual growth of people & a country’s economic prosperity. Pollution-induced poor living conditions are making large Indian cities like Delhi less desirable for upward-moving urban middle classes. If this becomes a regular occurrence, we risk our economic drivers – our cities collapsing. Incidentally, today Delhi’s air quality breaches are ‘severe’, and GRAP III is imposed,” said Shubhashis Dey, Director, Climate Policy and Climate Finance, Shakti, at an inaugural session.
