By Srija Kumar
The Union Budget for 2026-27 has been presented and concerns raised about a fall in allocation of funds for pollution control. Despite this, there is an increase in allocations in other important areas that are closely related to growth and climate change.
According to data provided by the government, the funds for pollution control boards and air quality schemes is at ₹1,091 crore in the current financial year. Which is lower than the budget estimate of ₹1,300 crore in the previous budget. This is of grave concern since air pollution remains a pressing health hazard, especially in large cities like Delhi and Mumbai where the aqi has worsened beyond expectations.
Ministry of Environment, Forests, and Climate Change has received an increased allocation of around ₹3,759 crore, an increase of eight percent over last year. This increase indicates a significant hope on addressing environmental issues.
The budget allocating a lot of money to renewable energy and energy transition projects reflects clean power and green technology are getting a boost. On the other hand , climate-related spending programmes that try to reduce pollution and help people adapt to climate change are not getting as much money as they need. The climate change programmes are still very important. They are not getting enough resources.
The budget focuses on infrastructure and industrial growth. Funds allocated have been increased to an amount of ₹12.2 lakh crores with main focus lying on manufacturing, transport and logistics. The government plans to spend ₹20,000 crore on technologies that capture and store carbon. This technology decreases the amount of carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and other pollutants released by industries.
Environmental activists have been demanding air and water quality testing along with management of pollution in cities, to tackle health-related issues linked with climate change. As India tries to find a balance between economic development and environmental challenges, the budget of 2026 is a reflection of the fact that the challenge of aligning development priorities with pollution control continues.