With reference to air quality monitoring and guidelines, consider the following statements: 1. The World Health Organization's updated annual safe limit for PM2.5 is 5 micrograms per cubic meter. 2. The National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) aims to completely eliminate all PM2.5 emissions in India by 2030. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Question

Accepted Answer

A) 1 only — Statement 1 is correct as the WHO updated its annual PM2.5 guideline to 5 micrograms per cubic meter in 2021. Statement 2 is incorrect because NCAP aims for a targeted percentage reduction (40 percent by 2026) in particulate matter concentration in non-attainment cities, not complete elimination.