PIB TrackerCSIR-CRRI ties up with UP to implement CAQM's road-dust paving-and-greening framework in the NCR
The road-research institute, with UP PWD and SPA Delhi, will operationalise the Commission for Air Quality Management's standard framework for paving and greening urban roads to cut road-dust pollution in the NCR.
What happened
- CSIR-Central Road Research Institute (CSIR-CRRI) signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) with the PWD, Government of Uttar Pradesh and the School of Planning and Architecture (SPA), New Delhi, for implementing the project 'The Standard Framework for Paving and Greening of Urban Roads (Uttar Pradesh State - NCR Region)'.
- CSIR-CRRI's Director highlighted the institute's commitment to scientific solutions for mitigating road-dust pollution and improving urban road infrastructure, stressing collaboration among research institutions, planning agencies and state governments to address air-quality challenges in the NCR.
- The project operationalises the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) Standard Framework and Detailed Guidance Document for Paving and Greening of Urban Roads, issued on 7 January 2025.
- CAQM's Technical Member appreciated the translation of CAQM guidelines into actionable projects for the NCR states, and UP's PWD Secretary expressed confidence it would significantly reduce road-dust emissions.
- The MoA was formally exchanged among the participating organisations at CSIR-CRRI, New Delhi.
For Prelims
- CAQM: The Commission for Air Quality Management in the National Capital Region and Adjoining Areas, a statutory body under the CAQM Act, 2021, which supersedes other bodies on air-quality directions in the NCR (covering Delhi, and parts of Haryana, UP and Rajasthan).
- Road dust and PM pollution: Re-suspended road dust is one of the largest contributors to PM10/PM2.5 in the NCR; 'paving and greening' of road shoulders/medians and verges suppresses dust at source.
- CSIR-CRRI: The Central Road Research Institute, a constituent lab of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) under the Ministry of Science & Technology, specialising in road/pavement research.
- School of Planning and Architecture (SPA), New Delhi: An Institute of National Importance for planning and architecture — the urban-planning partner translating the framework into design.
- GRAP: The Graded Response Action Plan — CAQM's staged emergency measures triggered by AQI thresholds in the NCR (the dust-control measures complement this with structural, source-level action).
- National Clean Air Programme (NCAP): The 2019 programme (MoEFCC) to reduce particulate pollution in non-attainment cities — the broader policy context for NCR road-dust action.
- Don't confuse: CAQM (statutory, NCR air quality, under MoEFCC) is distinct from the CPCB (Central Pollution Control Board) and from State Pollution Control Boards; CAQM directions override conflicting orders in the NCR.
For UPSC: CSIR-CRRI, with UP PWD and SPA Delhi, will implement CAQM's paving-and-greening framework (issued Jan 2025) to cut road-dust pollution in the NCR. Anchor CAQM (statutory body, CAQM Act 2021, supersedes others in the NCR), road dust as a key PM source, GRAP and the NCAP as the air-quality policy stack, and CSIR-CRRI's research role.
What it is NOT: CAQM is a statutory body (CAQM Act, 2021) whose directions override conflicting orders in the NCR — it is NOT the same as the CPCB or State Pollution Control Boards. This MoA operationalises a structural, source-level dust-control framework — distinct from GRAP's temporary emergency curbs.
For Mains
Syllabus: GS3.14 · GS3.9 · Linkage L2
Anchor
Source-level action on road dust — institutionalising scientific paving-and-greening standards to tackle NCR particulate pollution beyond emergency measures.
Substantiation (data)
CSIR-CRRI + UP PWD + SPA Delhi MoA; CAQM Standard Framework (7 Jan 2025); road dust a leading PM source in the NCR.
Exemplification
Cite research-academia-government collaboration translating CAQM guidelines into actionable urban-road projects as a model for evidence-based pollution control.
Problematisation
NCR air pollution is multi-source (vehicles, stubble, industry, dust); road-dust action alone is insufficient; implementation, funding and inter-state coordination are hard.
Way-forward
Combine structural dust control with NCAP targets, GRAP, clean transport and stubble management; ensure CAQM-led inter-state coordination and monitoring.
Position
Government/CAQM stance: translating air-quality guidelines into scientific, on-ground paving-and-greening projects strengthens NCR air-quality management.
Deploys into: Air-quality governance (CAQM, GRAP, NCAP) · urban road dust & particulate pollution · science-policy implementation · NCR inter-state coordination (GS3.14 conservation/pollution/EIA, GS3.9 urban infrastructure).
Ministry of Science & Technology · 2026-06-10 · PRID 2271399 · PIB source ↗