Rs 1,885 crore is dedicated to pollution control and environmental initiatives, the highest allocation in the city’s history.
Delhi’s FY 2025-26 budget, presented by Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on 25 March 2025, totals Rs 1 lakh crore, a 31.5 % increase over the previous year’s estimate. Within this, the government has earmarked approximately Rs 1,885 crore for pollution control, environment and sustainability initiatives — marking the largest single green-spending commitment in the city’s history.
Direct Environment & Pollution-Control Allocations
From the budget documentation and according to a report by CNBCTV18.com, these are the key allocations:
Rs 300 crore for “Pollution Control & Emergency Measures” — to implement rapid pollution-curbing reforms and measures.
Rs 506 crore for the Environment & Forest Department — for environmental monitoring, afforestation, biodiversity restoration and related programmes.
Rs 20 crore for the Delhi Parks & Garden Society — funding RWAs, NGOs and local societies to maintain and enhance green space across the city.
Rs 500 crore for Yamuna river cleanup and decentralised sewage-treatment plants (STPs) — building 40 such STPs to treat sewage at source.
Rs 250 crore for sewer-infrastructure renewal — replacing old sewer lines to reduce untreated discharge and water-pollution load.
Rs 58.8 crore for anti-smog gun operations and equipment — including dust-suppression systems, mobile smog-gun units and sweeper infrastructure.
Subtotal – Direct Allocations: Rs 1,634.8 crore
Indirect / Supporting Green Infrastructure & Sustainability Spending
Beyond core pollution-control, the budget includes supporting measures that enhance resilience and sustainability:
Rs 50 crore for rooftop-solar incentives under the “PM Surya Ghar – State Top-Up” scheme — encouraging residential solar installations.
Rs 603 crore allocated to the Irrigation & Flood Control Department, of which approximately Rs 150 crore is attributed directly to environmental and climate-resilience measures (drain remodelling, desilting etc.).
Rs 200 crore for rain-water harvesting and emergency water-storage measures — improving water resilience and reducing run-off pollution.
Rs 50 crore for revival of lakes and water-bodies — pond-renovation and urban water-ecosystem restoration.
Subtotal – Indirect Green Initiatives: ≈ Rs 250 crore
Grand Total – Environmental & Pollution-Control Commitment
Direct Environment & Pollution-Control: Rs 1,634.8 crore
Indirect Green & Sustainability Add-ons: ≈ Rs 250 crore
Total Environmental & Sustainability Commitment: ≈ Rs 1,885 crore (underlined above as the green outlay for FY 2025-26)
Breakdown by Focus Area (Approximate Distribution)
Air Pollution & Monitoring (~20 %) — Smog guns, CAAQM stations, ICCC data-networks.
Water & Yamuna Cleanup (~40 %) — STPs, sewer renewal, drain-remodelling.
Green Cover & Biodiversity (~15 %) — Tree-planting campaigns, parks, forest expansion.
Renewables & Energy Efficiency (~10 %) — Rooftop solar support.
Waste & Flood-Control / Resilience (~15 %) — Flood-drains, rain-water harvesting, water infrastructure.
Delhi’s Air-Quality Crisis & Categorisation of AQI
According to the CPCB, the Air Quality Index (AQI) is categorised as:
0–50: Good
51–100: Satisfactory
101–200: Moderate
201–300: Poor
301–400: Very Poor
401–500: Severe
As of 13 November 2025, Delhi’s air quality remained in the “Severe” category for the third straight day. This was reported by the Hindustan Times: the average AQI stood at ~405 at 10 am, with readings of 460 at Bawana, 454 at Wazirpur and 447 at Rohini. Out of 39 active monitoring stations, 25 reported “Severe”-level readings. (Hindustan Times)
Implementation and Usage: How the Funds Are Being Deployed
While Delhi has made an ambitious Rs 1,885-crore allocation toward pollution control and environmental welfare in its 2025–26 Budget, actual utilisation of existing central and state-linked environmental funds continues to lag behind.
According to government data cited by PTI and The Hindu (June 18, 2025), Delhi has utilised only 32.65% of the funds released to it under the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) — India’s first national plan to cut particulate pollution by 40% in 130 high-risk cities by 2026 (using 2019–20 as the base year). Out of Rs 42.69 crore sanctioned to the capital under the scheme, Delhi spent just Rs 13.94 crore.
The NCAP aims to strengthen air-quality monitoring networks, deploy anti-smog guns and real-time data systems, and improve coordination between municipal bodies and the state government. However, utilisation gaps and bureaucratic delays have slowed the rollout of these interventions in Delhi, despite the urgent need to address hazardous air quality levels.
The same data shows that other NCR cities have also struggled to spend their clean-air grants — Noida utilised just Rs 3.44 crore of Rs 30.89 crore received, while Faridabad spent Rs 28.6 crore of Rs 107.14 crore. Overall, 14 Indian cities have used less than half of their allocated NCAP funds.
Nationally, as of May 2025, only Rs 8,981 crore of Rs 12,636 crore (71%) allocated under NCAP to 130 cities has been spent. Of this, 82 cities funded directly by the Union Environment Ministry spent 78.5%, while the 48 large cities funded via the 15th Finance Commission utilised around 70% of their allocations.
These figures underline the critical implementation challenge — while Delhi’s budgetary intent is stronger than ever, effective execution and fund absorption remain the key test in translating fiscal allocation into tangible air-quality improvement.
The Delhi government has announced that these allocations will fund a mix of pollution-mitigation, ecosystem-restoration, and climate-resilience projects, implemented through multiple agencies and departments.
Here’s how the money is being put to use on the ground:
Air Pollution Control Measures:
Expansion of real-time air quality monitoring, with six new stations planned, according to Delhi Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa (March 2025).
Operation of anti-smog guns and mechanised sweepers at major roads and industrial zones.
Enforcement of construction dust controls and use of treated wastewater for site dust suppression.
Yamuna and Water Management:
40 decentralised STPs to treat sewage before discharge into the Yamuna.
Sewer replacement projects to prevent leaks and illegal drainage.
Rainwater harvesting structures across public buildings and schools to increase groundwater recharge.
Lake and pond restoration initiatives under the Delhi Jal Board and Irrigation Department.
Greening and Afforestation:
Tree plantation and biodiversity parks expansion by the Forest Department and local RWAs.
Support to RWAs and NGOs via the Delhi Parks and Garden Society for park maintenance and community greening.
Renewable Energy and Climate Action:
Rooftop solar subsidies under PM Surya Ghar to boost residential adoption.
Pilot energy efficiency programmes for government offices and schools.
Implementation Challenges & Outlook
Despite this historic allocation, execution remains an issue. A June 2025 report by The Hindu (PTI) showed that under the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP), Delhi had spent only Rs 13.94 crore — 32.65 % of the Rs 42.69 crore released — raising concerns about fund-utilisation and capacity to deliver.
The gap between allocation and actual spending suggests that the success of the green budget will depend heavily on ground implementation, coordination among agencies and sustained monitoring.
