Euro IV Norms in India:

Social, Historical and Legal Background

A. Sahay*

Abstract

The erstwhile order of the Supreme Court, disallowing registration in the National

Capital Region (NCR), from 1 April 2000 onwards, of private non-commercial

vehicles failing to conform to Euro II fuel emission norms, had added a new

dimension to the public debate on eco-friendly and sustainable urban transport

systems. An area that has been neglected in this new debate is the role that fuels

such as petrol and diesel would play if new cars are to meet the Euro IV norms in

near future in metro cities. The background of Supreme Court’s order on

environmental issues and acceptability by the automobile manufacturers to

produce vehicles that adhere to Euro IV norms raise an important question: Will

the petroleum and automobile industries be able to agree on a common goal for

automotive emission standards? What will be social reaction and how will the

Govt. tackle it? The present article, after giving brief history, discusses about the

legal, administrative, social and technological aspects of implementing Euro III all

over India and then steps towards implementation of Euro IV and onward norms.

Introduction

India's ongoing population explosion has placed great strain on the country's

environment. This rapidly growing population, along with a move toward

urbanization and industrialization, has placed significant pressure on India's

infrastructure and its natural resources. Deforestation, soil erosion, water

pollution and land degradation continue to worsen and are hindering economic

* Dr. A. Sahay is Professor of Strategic Management and Chairman, Center for

Entrepreneurship, Management Development Institute, Gurgaon, India

development in rural India, while the rapid industrialization and urbanization in

India's booming metropolises are straining the limits of municipal services and

causing serious air pollution problems.

The Environment Protection Act was passed in 1986, creating the Ministry of

Environment and Forests (MoEF) and strengthening India's commitment to the

environment, which was enshrined in the 42nd amendment to country's

constitution in 1976. Under the 1986 Environmental Protection Act, the MoEF is

tasked with the overall responsibility for administering and enforcing

environmental laws and policies. The MoEF established the importance of

integrating environmental strategies into any development plan for the country.

Nevertheless, despite a greater commitment by the Indian government to protect

public health, forests and wildlife, policies geared to develop the country's

economy have taken precedence in the last 20 years. While industrial

development has contributed significantly to economic growth in India, it has

done so by degrading the environment.

Not only is industrial pollution increasing public health risks, but abatement

efforts also are consuming a significant portion of India's gross domestic product

(GDP). As such, one of MoEF's main responsibilities continues to be the

reduction of pollution. To control pollution, especially in urban areas, the Govt.

has taken following action for the Industrial Sector.

• Closure of polluting industries after due warnings to remedy the situation.

• Shifting of polluting industries to less polluted locations.? Carrying capacity

based development planning.

• ?Declaration of air pollution control areas by state governments

• ?Industrial zoning followed by Industrial Complexes, for pollution prevention

and reuse of wastes.

As far as transport sector is concerned, emissions all over the country from 18

million on-road vehicles in 1989 totaled 26,000 tons per day (TPD), which

increased to around 63,000 TPD from 49 million vehicles by the end of 2001 and

is expected to increase to around 85,000 TPD by 2005. Therefore, exhaust

emission control has become a matter of paramount importance. The initiatives

taken so far cover:

• ?Phased switchover from leaded to unleaded petrol beginning in 1995 initially

in the metro cities. Only unleaded petrol is supplied in all retail outlets of the

entire country effective 01.02.2000

• ?Introduction of Vehicular Pollution Checks of all vehicles on the roads in the

metropolitan cities coupled with phasing out of old vehicles and replacement

of two stroke engines.

• ?Improved engine efficiency coupled with use of catalytic converters in new

vehicles.

Earlier a Supreme Court directive had stipulated the adoption of Euro-I and Euro-

II emission norms in a time bound manner.

• In consultation with the Ministry of Environment & Forests (MoEF), the

Ministry of Surface Transport (MoST) vide GSR 77(E) dated 31.01.2000 had

notified more stringent emission standards known as Bharat Stage-II similar

to Euro-II emission standards for registration of Motor cars and other Four-

wheeler Passenger Vehicles with Gross Vehicle Weight (GVW) equal or less

than 3500 Kg, which should confirm to Euro-II emission norms by 01.04.2000

in the National Capital Region.

• Introduction of low-sulfur diesel and low benzene gasoline in a phased

manner along with promotion of alternative fuels like Compressed Natural

Gas (CNG).

• The Ministry of Surface Transport also constituted a committee, vide its order

dated 19.01.2000, to work out a phased time table, for introduction of fuel with

0.05% (max.) sulfur content throughout the country to enable the stipulation of

Bharat-II emission standards for registration of new vehicles throughout the

country.

Air Quality in Metro Cities

Industrialization and urbanization have resulted in a profound deterioration of

India's air quality. India has more than 20 cities with populations of at least 1

million, and some of them-including New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, and Kolkata

are among the world's most polluted cities. Urban air quality ranks among the

world's worst. Of the 3 million premature deaths in the world that occur each year

due to outdoor and indoor air pollution, the highest number are assessed to

occur in India. India's most severe environmental problem, the air pollution,

comes in from several sources in several forms. They include vehicular

emissions and untreated industrial smoke. Continued urbanization has

exacerbated the problem of rapid industrialization, as more and more people are

adversely affected and cities are unable to implement adequate pollution control

mechanisms.

One of the most affected cities is New Delhi, where airborne particulate matter

(PM) were registered at levels more than 10 times India's legal limit. Vehicles are

the major source of this pollution, with more than three million cars, trucks,

buses, taxis, and rickshaws already on the roads. With vehicle ownership rising

along with population and income, India's efforts to improve urban air quality

have focused in this area. In New Delhi, emission limits for gasoline and diesel

powered vehicles came into effect in 1991 and 1992, respectively. In

consequence thereof, the city has prohibited the use of vehicle more than 15

years old. Emissions standards for passenger cars and commercial vehicles

were tightened in 2000 at levels equivalent to the Euro-I standards of the

European Union, while the more stringent Euro-II standards was in place for the

metropolitan areas of Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, and Kolkata since 2001. Further,

the sulfur content of motor fuels sold in the four cities was restricted to 500 parts

per million (PPM) since 2001 in order to be compatible with tighter vehicle

emissions standards. Motor fuel sulfur content in all other regions of India has

been limited to 2,500 PPM since January 2000.

Regulatory reforms aimed at improving the air pollution problem in cities such as

New Delhi have been difficult to implement. In 1998, Hon’ble Supreme Court

issued a ruling requiring all the city’s buses to be run on compressed natural gas

(CNG) by March 31, 2001. Compliance was to be achieved either by converting

existing diesel engines or by replacing the buses themselves. However, only 200

(out of a total fleet of 12,000) CNG-fueled buses were available by the initial

deadline. Public protests, riots, and widespread "commuter chaos" ensued as

running of some 15,000 taxis and 10,000 buses in the city were banned.

However, coal-fired power plants located in the city for electricity generation have

undermined some of the vehicular-oriented air quality improvement initiatives.

Despite the fact that India is a large coal consumer, Central Pollution Control

Board has been slow to set sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions limits for coal-fired

power plants, perhaps, because most of the coal mined in India is low in sulfur

content. Coal-fired power plants do not face any nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions

limits either, although thermal plants fueled by other fossil fuels are subject to

particulate matter emission standards. Notwithstanding, the fact on the ground is

that the government's support for air quality standards has been undermined by

the lack of enforcement of these standards.

Thus the urban air quality in India has been declining over time due to upward

trends in power consumption, industrialization and vehicle use. Nationwide

monitoring stations report that the annual mean concentration of Suspended

Particulate Matters (SPM) has exceeded WHO’s specified limit (75 micro-

gm/m3). In cities like Mumbai, Ahemdabad and Nagpur, the annual average of

SPM is at least three times higher than WHO standards and in Delhi, Kolkata and

Kanpur, the annual average SPM values are over five times the standards.

However, the annual average concentration of SOx and NOx are generally low in

terms of WHO specified limits.

Parikh & Parikh2 (1999) estimated that 82 per cent of SO2, 38 per cent of NO2,

88 per cent of volatile organic compound (VOC) and 96 per cent of particulate

matter emission in India come from the household sector. The major reasons for

indoor air pollution are inefficient burning of inferior fuels like cow dung,

agricultural residue, coal and fuel wood, along with poor ventilation systems

inside the house. According to a Tata Energy Research Institute (TERI) study,

particulate matter concentrations in kitchens due to the burning of bio-fuels are

known to be as high as 30 times the WHO standards, while concentrations at the

workplace for primary workers can be as high as 12 times the WHO standard,

though outdoor concentrations are about 2.5 times the WHO standard in urban

and rural areas, and 8 times the standard in slums in India.

Who Pollutes the Air?

Air pollution is the outcome of unsustainable economic activities of production

and consumption. Burning of fossil and bio-fuels, industrial processes and

running of vehicles in the transport sector- all contribute heavily to air pollution.

Nearly 62 per cent of Indian power generation is from coal fired thermal power

plants and 70 per cent of the coal produced every year in India has been used for

thermal power generation. Although, most of the Indian coal has low sulfur

content, burning of coal has been the source of serious environmental problems

including the emission of CO2, NOx, fly-ash etc. It is reported that the transport

sector contributed most of the pollution load (27 per cent NOx, 74 per cent

carbon monoxide [CO], 11 per cent volatile organic compound and 100 per cent

lead in urban areas.

The vehicular pollution is caused because of the following factors :

• Many vehicles are in poor condition, creating more particulates and burning

fuel inefficiently.

• Lower quality fuel is used, leading to the emissions of far greater quantities of

pollutants.

• Motor vehicles are concentrated in a few large cities.

• There is a lack of public transport and travel demand management.

• Bad road conditions and poor infrastructure

As of June 30, 2000, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) identified a total

of 1551 medium and large industrial units under the seventeen highly polluting

industrial sectors. Of these about 77 per cent are predominantly water polluting,

15 percent predominantly air polluting and the remaining 8 per cent of the

industries are potentially both air and water polluting. Out of 1551 units, 1324

have provided the requisite pollution control facilities, 165 units have closed and

62 units are defaulting. Air pollution causes many health problems, hinders

economic productivity, damages material property and causes ecological

changes.

Introduction of Euro standard

Poor air quality leads to health problems such as respiratory and cardiovascular

disease. To preserve air quality, cars must meet certain standards for exhaust

emissions before they can be approved for sale. Successive 'Euro' emission

standards for passenger cars and light vehicles were initiated in the EU in 1993.

They have already helped achieve considerable reduction in air pollution from

cars, for example by forcing carmakers to fit catalyst filters to exhaust

pipes. Heavy-duty trucks and buses, off-road diesel vehicles and motorcycles are

subject to separate emissions regulations. The negative health and

environmental effects of air pollution are to be tackled by the Commission in a

forthcoming strategy due by mid 2005. This so-called thematic strategy on air

pollution will be adopted as part of the 6th environmental action programme and

its related Clean Air for Europe (CAFE) programme launched in 2001 (see

EurActiv Links Dossier on the 6th EAP).

The first Indian emission regulations were idle emission limits which became

effective in 1989. These idle emission regulations were soon replaced by mass

emission limits for both gasoline (1991) and diesel (1992) vehicles, which were

gradually tightened during the 1990’s. Since the year 2000, India started

adopting European emission and fuel regulations for four-wheeled light-duty and

heavy-duty vehicles. Indian own emission regulations were prescribed for two

and three-wheeled vehicles.

Though the Govt. is keen to catch up with the developed world as far as the air

pollution from automobiles is concerned, the following factors are hindering

proper implementation of exhaust emission (Euro) Norms:

1. A set of lacunae exists in the pollution control and implementation of Euro

norms in India.

2. The standards have not been implemented for the entire country. The

government has not given any rationale reason for not adopting these

standards for the whole nation.

3. The issue of pollution by the existing fleet of old technology vehicles still

remains. Estimates show that 70 per cent of the cars are from the pre-

catalytic converter era. It is established that the catalytic converters

substantially reduce emissions of carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons.

4. The current set of diesel vehicles on our roads emits inordinate amounts of

particulate matter, NOx and sulphur dioxide. Of highest concern are the fine,

respirable particles of sizes 10 and 2.5 microns (PM10 and PM2.5) which are

highly carcinogenic and carry toxic heavy metals with them. It is time the

government set standards to particularly address PM10 and PM2.5

emissions. The answer may lie in control technologies such as particulate

traps, oxidation catalysts, and NOx catalytic controls.

5. The poor maintenance of vehicles. There is a tendency for vehicles to pollute

more as they get older. Solution could lie in mandatory periodic fitness

certification for all such vehicles. A rigorous maintenance schedule by the

owner and genuine certification by authorised service stations would be the

key elements of any such effort.

6. The Motor Vehicles Act of 1988 and the Central Motor Vehicles Rules of 1989

place no limit on the age of vehicles plying on the road. They also lack any

provision that addresses the scrapping of old commercial vehicles. The same

is being challenged in courts of law. Even with the best of maintenance

standards, the older vehicles may still cause an unacceptable level of

pollution.

7. The court’s directives do not apply to old personalised vehicles.

8. The crucial role of oil refineries in improving air quality cannot be overstated.

Fuel adulteration is rampant. For vehicles to conform to Euro norms, it is

imperative that petrol and diesel adhere to specific fuel properties. The oil

refineries still produce diesel with relatively high levels of sulphur though

production and use of leaded petrol has stopped.

Unless the above stated hindrances are overcome, the race against air pollution

will be lost even before getting started.

The New Auto Fuel Policy

The National Auto Fuel Policy announced by the Petroleum Minister, Shri Ram

Naik on October 6, 2003 envisages a phased programme for introducing

vehicular emission norms in the country by 2010. The policy seeks to improve

the fuel quality and vehicular engine specifications. It has proposed that liquid

fuels remain the main auto fuel throughout the country but suggested the use of

CNG and LPG in cities affected by higher pollution levels to enable vehicle

owners to have the choice of the fuel and technology combination.

The sulphur content in the fuel is the villain causing health damage through its

exhaust emission. The Government adopted a roadmap to clean the air of

vehicular exhaust pollution in cities after the Supreme Court reprimanded it for

laxity in curbing air pollution. The Central Government appointed an expert

committee in September 2001 under the chairmanship of Dr. R.A. Mashelkar,

Director-General, Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), to

suggest a roadmap taking the country to better urban air quality levels.

More stringent norms for fuels means steadily reducing the sulphur and

aromatics content in petrol and diesel fuels. Euro II, for example, stipulates that

sulphur be controlled at 350 parts-per-million (ppm) in diesel and 150 ppm in

petrol. Aromatic hydrocarbons are to be contained at 42 per cent of the

concerned fuel. The goal, according to the Mashelkar roadmap, is to reduce

sulphur to 50 ppm in petrol and diesel and bring down the level to 35 per cent.

Corresponding to the fuel, vehicle engines will also need to be upgraded.

Pursuing the matter further, the government has laid out a phased programme

for introducing Euro-IV vehicular emission norms in the country by 2010,

requiring an investment of Rs. 55,000 crore by oil and automobile companies in

improving fuel quality and vehicular engine specifications. The Bharat Stage II

(equivalent to Euro-II norms), which was in place in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata,

Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Pune, Surat, Kanpur and Agra,

has become applicable to all automobiles throughout the country from April 1,

2005.

All automobiles and fuel-petrol and diesel – will have to meet Euro III emission

specifications in these 11 cities from April 1, 2005 and Euro-IV norms by April 1,

2010. The rest of the country will have Euro-III emission norm compliant

automobiles and fuels by 2010. For two-and three-wheelers, Bharat State-II

norms will be applicable from April 1, 2005 and Euro-III norms would come in

force preferably from April 1, 2008, but not later than April , 2010. As the modified

road map for compliance of emission norms, the new policy has allowed that

after April 2007, inter-State buses/trucks would not be allowed to originate or

terminate in Delhi, unless they meet the minimum of India-2000 emission norms.

The cut-off point for meeting Bharat-II norms will be April 2011. Similarly, in

respect to ten other cities, all inter-State buses will have to meet with effect from

April 2006, a minimum of the 1996 emission norms, in case they were registered

before April 2002. They have to meet with effect from April 2008, a minimum of

India-2000 norms, if they were registered after April 2000. In respect of ten other

major cities, all inter-State buses would need to meet a minimum of Bharat II

emission norms from April 2011 if these vehicles are registered after April 2005.

Apart from Delhi, the ten other cities which are covered under the strict

compliance of emission norms are : Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore,

Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Pune, Surat, Kanpur and Agra.

As for new vehicles, the norm states that no vehicle could be sold in the entire

country unless it meets the Bharat II norms after April 2005 and Euro III after

April 2010. In case of the 11 major cities, Bharat II stage has already been

enforced as of April 2003 while Bharat III stage has become applicable from April

2005. Only Vehicles having emission meeting Bharat IV norms would be sold in

these cities after April 2010 under the policy.

The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas will ensure fuel quality while the

Ministry for Road Transport and Highways will monitor the automobiles’ engine

specifications. Pollution checks will be the responsibility of the Ministry of

Environment. The domestic oil refineries which have already invested over Rs.

10,000 crore to achieve earlier auto fuel specifications, would need to incur an

additional investment of around Rs. 18,000 crore by 2005 and Rs. 12,000 crore

by 2010. The investment requirement of the automobile industry is estimated at

around Rs. 25,000 crore over this period.

The auto fuel policy has deviated from the Mashelkar Committee

recommendations on two counts. Firstly, the fiscal concessions like excise duty

relief have not been provided immediately. This aspect will be looked after in the

annual budget. Secondly, the proposal to form a National Automobile Pollution

and Fuel Authority has not been accepted and individual ministries will continue

to monitor the standards. Inter-State buses/trucks would not be allowed to

originate or terminate in Delhi after April 1, 2007 unless they meet the minimum

of Euro-I emission norms. The cut off point for meeting Euro-II norms will be April

1, 2011. In other cities, all inter-State buses will have to meet a minimum of 1996

emission norms from April 1, 2006 and Euro-I norm from April 2008. Critical of

the Mashelkar report on the roadmap for cleaning the air of vehicular pollution,

an environmental group feels that the Union Cabinet’s decision to accept the

draft policy will not result in any substantial reduction in air pollution in Indian

cities.

The Mashelkar roadmap prescribes an incremental approach for upgradation of

fuel standard and vehicle design. The Centre for Science and Environment

(CSE), an NGO, says there is enough evidence of people’s health falling victim to

critical levels of pollution. The policy says that most of the cities it targets will get

Euro III standards, which are incrementally better than Euro II, in 2010. The CSE

feels that this totally ignores Delhi’s experience of technological leap froging with

aggressive use of alternative fuels and quicker implementation of advanced

emission norms. Learning from the CNG experiment in Delhi, the CSE feels that

air pollution levels have only stabilized. A lot needs to be done to bring down

pollution levels drastically.

The positive aspect of the policy on the phased reduction of auto engine

emissions is that car making units and ancillary manufacturers will no longer

have to bear the entire burden of the transition to Euro III norms over the next

seven years. They must do their bit, of course. But, now onwards, the oil refiners

too will have a major stake in lowering emissions, as car makers as well as fuel

suppliers in 11 major Indian cities ready themselves to meet Euro III norms from

April 1, 2005. But huge outlays like Rs. 55,000 crore would be even more

vindicated if there is also a change in the mind-set of the private users towards

greater public transport use. That will immediately slash fuel use as single

passenger/driver cars yield space to bussing, or comparable modes of collective

travel. Fuel use will be slashed to the extent that greater metro rail drives up

power use.

This is the way matters have been moving in the developed countries. The

suburban US commuters access commercial centers either riding bicycles or

walking from the nearest railway station. In Japan too, the passengers who

intend getting on to the famous ‘Bullet Train’ going to Tokyo, first travel to the

station nearest to them; they then leave their bicycles or mopeds in the parking

lots provided there. Progressive emission norms and the resources required to

implement them must be seen as just one component of an efficient energy or

pollution management in the society. This is why it is important to get more and

more people using mass public transport even as we move towards zero

emission norms.

The Supreme Court had strong-armed the government into enforcing strict

vehicular emission norms in the principal metros. Its chief concern was with

public health being put to serious risk by the polluting exhaust from the growing

number of motor vehicles. Going a step further, the apex court had also insisted

on the use of preferred technologies – such as CNG for buses and auto-

rickshaws - in order to limit pollution levels that were choking the key cities. (PIB

Features)

The automobile industry has to address the following issues at all

the stages of vehicle manufacture:

• Euro 4 standards have been in force since 1 January 2005 in some of the

cities

• The Commission opened a consultation process on the new car pollution

limits (Euro 5) on 15 July 2005. The consultation will close on 9

September 2005, with the Commission’s proposal expected later in the

autumn.

• The bill has to pass through the council and both houses of Parliament

before it is adopted (co-decision procedure).

Euro 4 and Beyond

A preliminary draft produced by the Commission for the next generation of fuel

exhaust standards for cars (known as Euro 5) forms the basis of a consultation

process that opened on 15 July 2005. The aim of the new standard is to reduce

emissions of carbon monoxide (CO), hydrocarbons (HC), oxides of nitrogen

(NOx) and particulate matters (PM), which are considered harmful to human

health. The new standard will also aim to close the loop-holes that exist in current

legislation to heavy sports utility vehicles (SUVs) and four -wheel drives above

2,500 kg. Very small PM - in the nanometer scale (PM2.5 and PM1) - is of

particular concern to health as it is understood to be the most toxic and capable

of penetrating deep inside the lungs. But its very nature, measurement and

toxicity are still being debated.

Responding to these calls, the Commission issued a guidance document for the

purpose of member states wishing to impose stricter limits on emissions from

diesel cars than required under the Euro 4 standards which came into force on 1

January 2005. The paper recommended setting the tax incentives limit at 5

mg/km of particulate matter, the same value as now proposed by the Euro 5 draft

(which, as said, only be met with current technology by fitting particulate filters to

vehicles). The paper sought to prevent a fragmentation of the internal market

with different tax incentives applying in different member states (see EurActiv, 14

Jan. 2005). 2004 study by the European Commission's Joint Research Centre

(JRC) analyses the probable impact of increasing demand for diesel at the

expense of petrol. It emphasizes the "relative reduction of the well-to-wheels

energy efficiency and poorer greenhouse gas performance per kilometer due to

additional processing at the refineries, decreasing efficiency advantages of diesel

cars over petrol cars and new fuel quality standards".

The European Federation for Transport and the Environment (T&E) strongly

supports Euro 5 standards as it says it provides a much better control of

emissions. T&E says particulate traps and catalytic converters are standard

technologies that could be fitted to all diesel engines. It states that the additional

costs of applying Euro 5 standards to diesel cars would currently cost between

200 and 400 euros. T&E further argues that, in urban areas, the health benefits

of cleaner air would compensate for the extra costs. T&E estimates potential

savings of reducing one tonne of PM emissions at 19,000 euros for the enlarged

EU.

Euro 5 Emissions Standards for Cars

Fuel exhausts have an impact on air quality and human health, especially in

urban areas where traffic is dense. To reduce this impact, the EU is preparing to

impose stricter emissions limits on both diesel and petrol cars, limiting in

particular nitrogen oxides (NOx) and particulate matter (PM) which pose the most

serious health problems. With the next generation of standards for cars (known

as Euro 5) recently drafted and set to enter into force as early as mid-2008, some

member states including France and Germany are already pressing ahead with

measures of their own.

Europe concentrates on cars as they have very small number of two wheelers

and 3 wheelers which are now rare. The above proposed European Union

stricter emissions limits alone won’t do much to check air pollution.

In India, the Supreme Court’s order disallowing registration of all private non-

commercial vehicles in the National Capital Region (NCR) failing to conform to

Euro II fuel emission norms from 1st April 2000 was the revival of public debate

on the need for an environment-friendly and sustainable transport network in

cities. This would meant that any new four wheeled petrol driven passenger

vehicle to be registered after 31st March 2000 in the NCR would have to meet

mass emission norms which were 2 to 3 times more stringent than the current

permissible carbon monoxide emissions depending upon the reference weight of

the vehicle. The corresponding tightening of norms for hydrocarbons and

nitrogen oxides together was to be about 3 to 4 times. Similarly, for new four

wheeled diesel passenger vehicles the new carbon monoxide emission norms

was 1.2 to 2 times more stringent compared to its present levels, correspondingly

for nitrogen oxides, the new range was 2 to 2.4 times stricter; and for particulate,

though currently there were no mass emission norms, but from April 2000 the

range became from 0.14 to 0.25 gm/km depending upon the reference weight of

the vehicle.

This order had shaken car manufacturers, which was evident from some of their

statements that they would try to meet the Euro II norms before the original

deadline of 1st April 2005 set by the apex court. The irony is that many of these

manufacturers were capable of producing vehicles that adhere to the Euro II

norms. Their foreign promoters were, in fact, manufacturing and selling only such

vehicles in other countries, which met the Euro II standards. Why did not these

companies adopt the Euro II norms for vehicles produced in India as well? When

they were forced to follow the stringent norms, they were indirectly admitting that

meeting these norms was indeed possible before the original deadline; the Indian

customers would not be very pleased with them. The other logical question was

why limit the enforcement of Euro II norms only in the NCR? The pollution

caused by automobiles was getting worse in other cities, too. Should we wait to

act similarly in other cities till they reach the levels of pollution that was in Delhi?

In fact, this was a right time to file a petition to the Supreme Court for extension

of Euro II emission norms to other metropolitan cities in the country. However, it

was not enough to just ensure that the new vehicles, all over the country and

wherever they were registered adhered to the Euro II norms.

Impediments in Enforcing Emission Norms

What about old vehicles? It was estimated that at any given time new vehicle

comprise around 8% of the total vehicle population in India. The remaining 92%

of the vehicles are required to undergo periodic fitness certification. The large

population of personalised vehicles is not yet covered by any such mandatory

requirement. In South East Asia, inspection and maintenance of all categories of

vehicles has been one of the chief tools used for exhaust emission control. Thus,

to bring down emissions from in-use vehicles on road, vehicular inspection and

maintenance programme and genuine certification by the authorized service

station has to be made mandatory.

Further, in India, there is no limit on the age of the vehicle that one can ply on the

road. Mass emissions from old vehicles would cause much more pollution than

the ones that do not conform to the Euro I or even Euro II norms. In the recent

past there are Supreme Court directives to scrap old commercial vehicles in the

city of Delhi but there is no specific regulatory framework to address the

scrapping of old commercial vehicles in the Motor Vehicle Act of 1988 and

Central Motor Vehicle Rules of 1989. Therefore, any order to scrap old vehicle

can be challenged in a court of law. Moreover, why only commercial vehicles?

Why not private vehicles too? The government should not shy away from its

responsibility of putting brakes on operation of all old and polluting vehicles on

the road. Why shouldn’t the government revive a public debate over scrapping of

commercial and non-commercial or private vehicles, which are highly polluting?

The government could even fine tune its policy for allowing depreciation on

investments in automobiles to create additional incentives for scrapping vehicles

beyond a certain age which do not conform to the emission standards.

Why blame the automobile industry alone for the pollution? In India, we are yet to

address the vehicle and fuel system as a whole as is being addressed in the

European Programme on Emission, Fuels and Engines Technologies (EPEFE).

This programme is an optimization activity undertaken jointly by Auto and Oil

Industry under the aegis of European Union in Brussels. The aim of this

programme is to find the most cost-effective combinations in terms of improved

vehicle technologies and improved fuel properties. In 1988, the European Union

mandated the European Standard Organization to develop comprehensive

specifications for automotive fuel.

Our very own state-owned oil refineries have been merrily producing diesel with

such high levels of sulphur in it as are unacceptable in any developed country? If

the public sector oil refineries do not want to submit themselves to a reasonable

time-frame for reducing the sulphur content in diesel, what is the guarantee that

the new oil refineries in the joint private sector would be conscious of the

environmental pollution their fuel can cause. And why wouldn’t they also refuse

to agree to any deadline, till they are forced to do so? It is time that public debate

also focused its attention on the oil refineries’ role in producing less polluting

fuels and explored what role the Supreme Court could play even in the area of

fuel quality.

To conform to the Euro I and II norms, the quality of petrol and diesel has to

adhere to specific fuel properties. These must include: initially reduction or

substitution of lead in petrol and reduction of sulphur in petrol and diesel; then

over a medium time frame complete or near complete elimination of sulphur,

aromatics, and heavy oils in diesel, and lead in petrol by using oxygenated

supplement like methyl tertiary butyl ether. Oxygenates boost octane value and

provide an effective means of reducing harmful emissions such as benzene,

toluene, and xylene in petrol. Further, increased use of clean substitute fuels

(oxygenated blends, CNG, propane), particularly in captive fleet vehicles with

high mileage and restricted range of operation, such as taxis, autos and buses

should be promoted.

Is automobile technology fix sufficient? There are limitations to a strategy

focused primarily on changing automotive technology. Without an integrated

transport policy, it could be quite possible that the growth in the motor vehicle

fleet can partially or fully offset the improvements obtained from the increase in

energy efficiency and the reduction in emissions output of individual vehicles.

The travel demand management is the missing ingredient in the current air

pollution strategy. It is desirable, therefore, to complement the supply-side

interventions with demand management measures, if the ultimate objective is to

secure improved levels of air quality. They range from simple traffic engineering

interventions (coordinated signals, reversible lanes, one-way street pairs, and

other traffic control devices) to traffic restraints (area licensing schemes, parking

controls, exclusive pedestrian zones, vehicle bans, special bus and high

occupancy vehicle lanes and so on), advanced area traffic control techniques,

and provision of facilities and services to encourage modal shifts (such as

sidewalks, bicycle lanes, light and rapid rail transit, and commuter rail). These

measures would require a policy framework encompassing regulatory, pricing,

and taxation mechanisms, and need to be backed with effective enforcement, to

encourage the use of clean vehicles and fuels, to restrict or ban the use of

polluting vehicles and fuels, and to modify travel behavior and transport demand.

The recent news that Maruti Udyog has rolled out Euro-III compliant cars is a

welcome sign that the automobile industry is catching up with the global

standards. Euro-III is nearly equivalent to Bharat Stage-III, which is the vehicular

emission standard proposed by the Union government and the same has

become effective from April 2005 in identified metropolitan cities having

substantial vehicle population. It seems appropriate at the outset, to take a close

look at these graduating vehicles and assess their efficacy technologically in

controlling air quality standards of our nation. The recommendation based on the

Mashelkar committee report for the auto-fuel policy launched in the country for

improvement of air quality augurs well for all the stake holders. Bharat Stage-IV

equivalent to Euro-IV is envisaged in 2010. These norms should be introduced

such that the change over is gradual and smooth — first in metros and after a

gap of specified time, extended to vehicles plying all over India.

References

Chaudhari, M. K., in Clearing the Air: Better Vehicles, Better

Fuels (eds Bose, R. K., Sundar, S., Nesamani, K. S.), Tata Energy

Research Institute, 2000, pp.277–284.

Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) Authority for the

National Capital Region, A Report on Clean Fuels in Response to

the Hon’ble Supreme Court Order Dated 26 March 2001 and 27

April 2001, India, July 2001.

Report on Standards for CNG Vehicles, and Refilling Stations

In Response to the Hon'ble Supreme Court Order Dated April 4, 2001

(In the matter of W.P.(C) No.13029 of 1985; M.C. Mehta Vs UOI & o thers)

Proposal for Emission Controls on Petrol 2-Stroke Engine Driven Two and Three

Wheelers, October, 1999, Environment Pollution (Prevention & Control)

Authority for the National Capital Region

Diesel Killer Trend, Gobar Times, January, 2000

Sandhya Wakdikar, Compressed natural gas: A problem or a solution?,

Current Science, Vol. 82, No. 1, 10 January, 2002

B.P. Amoco Statistical Review of World Energy – 2000, in Indian

Petroleum and Natural Gas Statistics 1999–2000, Economics and

Statistics Division, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, New

Delhi, 2001.

Indian Petroleum and Natural Gas Statistics 1999–2000, Economics

and Statistics Division, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural

Gas, New Delhi, 2001.

Basic Statistics on Indian Petroleum and Natural Gas 1999–2000,

Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, India, September 2000.

Nylund Nils-olof and Lawson Alex, Report prepared for the

International Association of Natural Gas Vehicles Technical

Committee, March 2000, p. 29.

Winebrake, J. J., Strategic Planning for Energy and the Environment,

2000, 19(4), pp. 43–62.

Report, Tata Energy Research Institute, New Delhi, March

2001.

Sanghi Sanjeev, Kale, S. R., Mohan Dinesh, Report, Indian Institute

of Technology, Delhi, August 2001.

Natraj, M., in Clearing the Air: Better Vehicles, Better Fuels (eds

Bose, R. K., Sundar, S., Nesamani, K. S.), Tata Energy Research

Institute, 2000, pp. 261–266.

http://cseindia.org/campaign/apc/press_20010330.htm

http://commerce.nic.in/adfin_coldroll.htm

http://pib.nic.in/feature/feyr2003/fnov2003/f031120031.html