Series: Climate Trends Air Quality Series

With over 6000 buses, many of them being very old, the city transport system in Bengaluru could easily be a bulk entity that can be targeted for vehicular emission. The BMTC has also realised this—it is evident in the steps taken to put in place systems to control emissions and improve the quality of vehicles.

The Bengaluru plant has initiated the process of repairs and the shutting down of the furnaces will accelerate the process of revamp, expected to be completed by November end. The firm has said it will then apply afresh to the KSPCB for consent to operate.

The Supreme Court has imposed a penalty of Rs 50 lakh on Graphite India limited (GIL), calling its Whitefield plant a serious offender contributing to air pollution in the area. In the first of an in-depth two-part series, we look at the long struggle that led to the ruling.

A recent study report says that by switching to electric autos, carbon emissions can be reduced by 0.11 million tonne per year, PM10 by 114.5 million tonne per year, and NOx by 37.6 million tonne per year. So when will Namma Bengaluru make that switch and what’s been stopping it?

Several studies have pointed to the increasingly toxic air in the city, some pegging the levels of polluting particulate matter at three times the WHO-prescribed standards. What contributes to this and why is it so difficult to check?

“Ours is a monitoring station, which can only assess and suggest,” say KSPCB officials. What are these suggestions and is the city even close to implementing those?

Is the Emission Test mechanism in Bengaluru good enough to ensure that vehicles are pollution-free and vehicle owners follow due process?