India
and Euro Norms
Emissions from ECVs, LEVs and ULEVs
 The
first piece of legislation in India was the Air Pollution Act in 1991.
The permissible level of gaseous automobile exhaust emissions was
tightened in 1996. India follows the European pattern for the emission
norms. For commercial vehicles with diesel engines, the norms are based
on the European legislation.
The Indian government has set up April 1, 2000 as the date to implement
the next set of emission standards that will apply for all the vehicles
manufactured on or after that date.
| Pollutants |
Limits for |
Conformity of
|
|
Type approval
|
Production |
| CO (g/kwh ) |
4.5 |
4.9 |
| HC (g/kwh ) |
1.1 |
1.23 |
| Nox (g/kwh) |
8.0 |
9.0 |
| PM (g/kwh) for engines |
|
|
| with power exceeding85 KW |
0.36 |
0.4 |
| PM (g/kwh) for engines |
|
|
| with power not exceeding85 KW
|
0.36 |
0.4 |
The new vehicles brought by the Indian
auto industry has brought down emission levels production by as much as
80% as compared to 1989, but it is the older, already in use vehicles
which are the main culprits.
The industry has acquired, developed, and adapted new technology, and
reengineered itself to produce increasingly cleaner vehicles - Low
Emission Vehicles (LEVs) in 1996, and Ultra Low Emission Vehicles
(ULEVs) by 2000.
The total emission has come down from 360 tonnes per day to 70 tonnes
per day. During the control period, new vehicle emissions from Emission
Control Vehicles (ECV), Low Emission Vehicles (LEVs) and Ultra Low
Emission Vehicles (ULEVs) are outlined below.
Emissions from ECVs LEVs and ULEVs
| Year |
Type of vehicle |
No. of annual
sales in millions |
Emissions |
| 1989 |
ECV |
1.8 |
360 |
| 1996 |
LEV |
3.5 |
220 |
| 2000 |
ULEV |
5.5 |
70 |
The imposition of Euro Norms is a must if
India is to be saved from the hazards of a grossly polluted environment.
A petrol driven four wheeler which adheres to Euro Norms II, depending
on its engine capacity, would emit 2-3 times less carbon monoxide and
3-4 less hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides than the currently stipulated
levels.
The diesel version of the same, depending on the gross vehicle weight,
would be required to meet emission norms that compared to present
levels, are 1.2-2 times stricter for carbon monoxide and double this
value for nitrogen oxides (NOx). Notably, for the first time in India,
emission norms would also be set for particulate matter.
|
