Policy Brief
Could the National Capital Region serve as a control region for effective air quality management in Delhi?
04 Nov 2020
| Dr Sumit Sharma
| Dr Isha Khanna
Air pollution does not follow administrative boundaries, and needs to be tackled at the regional "airshed" level at which it is caused. Identifying the appropriate candidates for airshed management requires scientific analysis using systematically developed emissions inventories and dispersion models to simulate the impact of the estimated emissions on air quality.
Emissions control in thermal power stations: Issues, challenges, and the way forward
21 Feb 2020
| Mr Raghav Pachouri
| Mr A K Saxena
As per TERI's analysis, of the total environmental pollution in 2016, the power sector reportedly accounted for 51% of sulphur dioxide (SO2), 43% of carbon dioxide (CO2), 20% of oxides of nitrogen (NOx), and 7% of PM2.5 emissions.
Crop residue management: Solution to achieve better air quality
30 Jan 2020
| Dr Arindam Datta
| Dr N K Ram
| Mr Sunil Dhingra
| Mr Mrinal A. Emmanuel
Residents of different cities (probably villages too) of India breathe some of the least healthy air of the globe. During 2017, about 76.8% of the population of India were exposed to annual population-weighted mean PM2·5 greater than the limit recommended by the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQ: 40 mg/m3) (Balakrishnan, Dey, Gupta, et al. 2019). Over last five years, the annual population-weighted mean ambient PM2·5 concentrations were significantly higher over the Indo- Gangetic Plain (IGP) region in comparison to other parts of the country. It should also be noted that polluted air is the second highest health risk factor in India (Balakrishnan, Dey, Gupta, et al. 2019).
Fleet Modernization: A solution to achieve better air quality
10 Dec 2019
| Ms Shivani Sharma
| Dr Anju Goel
| Mr Souvik Bhattacharjya
| Ms Mani Juneja
| Mr Nitin Bajpai
| Dr Sumit Sharma
India's transport demand has grown from a total of 5.3 million in 1981 to 230 million in 2016, with two-wheelers and cars having 73% and 14% share, respectively. Commercial vehicles though constitute only about 5% of the total fleet, contribute to nearly 80% of total PM emissions. Phase-wise implementation of fleet modernization (transforming pre BS-IV commercial vehicles to BS-VI) would lead to a 40-80% reduction in PM and NOx emissions from the sector by 2025. The total number of avoided mortality from attributable to PM5 reduction from fleet modernization between 2020 and 2040 is estimated to be more than 500,000.
Opportunities with Biofuel: Co-benefit of Air Quality Improvement
05 Dec 2019
| TERI
| Finnish Meteorological Institute, Finland
| Tampere University, Finland
While biofuels have been discussed as one of the ways to reduce air pollution, changing the process of bio-diesel production is needed to reduce tailpipe emissions of nanoparticles. These are lesser known pollutants even more harmful than PM2.5 and PM10.
Position paper on Improving Inspection and Maintenance System for In-use Vehicles in India
03 Mar 2017
| Mr Jai Kishan Malik
| Dr Sumit Sharma
| Dr Arindam Datta
| Ms C Sita Lakshmi
The transport sector is an important contributor to pollution in cities. The sector accounts for a significant contribution in PM2.5 concentrations in most Indian cities. In Bengaluru, the sector accounts for almost 50% of PM2.5 concentrations.
Advancement of Fuel Quality and Vehicle Emissions Norms to Improve Urban Air Quality in India
14 Sep 2014
| Dr Sumit Sharma
| Dr Suresh Jain
| Dr Anju Goel
| Ms Richa Mahtta
| Dr Atul Kumar
| Dr Divya Datt
| Ms Seema Kundu
| Dr Prateek Sharma
The health impacts of the deteriorating ambient air quality in urban cities worldwide are of serious concern. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), one of the top ten causes of death is attributed to air pollution (WHO, 2010); diesel engine exhaust, for instance has been linked with increased lung cancer risk (WHO, 2012). Motor vehicles are one of the major sources contributing to air pollution at local, regional and global scale. India, which has the largest number of megacities in the world, is facing serious air quality problems in its urban areas. India's transport sector is the fastest growing consumer of energy.
Cooking with cleaner fuels in India: a strategic analysis and assessment
07 Dec 2010
| Ms Meena Sehgal
The series 'Cooking with cleaner fuels in India: a strategic analysis and assessment' is a collection of four policy briefs that carry findings emanating from a joint research by TERI and All India Institute of Medical Sciences (with support from UNICEF) on healthy cooking fuel options for India. The briefs trace the usage of different fuels in rural and urban households, health implications of using less cleaner cooking fuels, and stakeholder partnerships of governments, funding agencies, industry and consumer groups to accelerate adoption of cleaner cooking fuels.