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Bharat Stage (BS) VI Norms: A Jump from BS IV

According to World Health Organisation (WHO) Air Pollution report, contaminated air has led to rise in global health crisis, resulting in around seven million deaths per year. The report also highlighted that out of ten most polluted cities in the world, India has nine. Delhi NCR is the most polluted capital city in the world. In India, air pollution is the leading cause of around 12.5% deaths every year, most of them are children under the age of five. The report specially mentioned the grave situation of air pollution in the country.



Government of India is committed to reduce the problem of air pollution in the country and initiated various programmes such as National Clean Air Programme (NCAP), Graded Action Response Programme (GRAP), SAFAR, Smog Towers, and many more. India is also committed to the Nationally Determined Commitment under the Paris Agreement of 2015 COP 21.

 

The Bharat Stage (BS) emission norms

Indian government instituted the BS emission standards to regulate the emissions from internal combustion engines and spark ignition engines equipment, including motor vehicles. These standards is meant to limit the emission of air pollutants such as nitrogen oxides (NOx), carbon monoxide (CO), hydrocarbons, particulate matter (PM) and sulphur oxides (SOx) coming out from the  vehicles using internal combustion engines, with appropriate fuel and technology. Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), under the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) sets the standards and timeline for implementation. These emission norms are based on European emission (EURO) norms which were first introduced in India in 2000 and then followed by BS II in 2001 and BS III in 2005. However, the enforcement of BS IV norms in 2017 made emission norms more stringent. The introduction of BS VI norms was to happen in 2022 but the delay between introduction of BS III and BS IV norms and looking at the poor air condition made the Indian government to skip BS V emission norms altogether and directly progress from BS IV to BS VI norms.


BS VI emission standards

In 2016, the government had announced that the country would adopt BS VI norms by 2020, skipping BS V norms. On 24 October, 2019, the Supreme Court had ruled that no BS IV vehicle would be sold with effect from 1st April, 2020. BS VI is the new emission standard that all vehicles will have to follow including four and two wheelers and commercial vehicles.

Although, taking into account the poor air condition of NCT of Delhi, on 15 Nov 2017, the Union petroleum ministry in consultation with public oil marketing companies decided to prepone the date of BS-VI grade auto fuels in NCT of Delhi with effect from 1 April 2018, rather than1 April 2020. Thus, Delhi became the first city to supply ultra clean BS VI grade fuel with an objective to curb the high level of air pollution in Delhi-NCR region.


Advantage of BS VI over BS IV?

v  As compare to BS IV, BS VI emission standards are more stringent.

v  Sulphur concentration in fuel is the main cause of concern. BS VI fuel contains five times (10 ppm) lower concentration of sulphur relative to BS IV fuel (50ppm).

v  Nitrogen oxides concentration is expected to reduce by 70% in BS VI fuels as compared to BS IV fuels in case of diesel vehicles, whereas 25 % in case of petrol vehicles.

v  OBD (On Board Diagnostics): It is vehicle’s self –diagnostic and reporting capability. To monitor the pollution caused by vehicle in real time, OBD will become mandated in every vehicle.

v  RDE (Real Driving Emission): it will be introduced for the first time to measure the emission in real world conditions and not just under test conditions.

v  BS VI standards intends to bring down emission of particulate matter by 80% in diesel cars, for every one km.

v  In BS-VI fuel, the volume of PM 2.5 ranges from 20 to 40 µg/m3 whereas in BS-IV fuel it is up to 120 µg/m3.

 

 

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