Air Quality Policy and Outreach

• By 2035, the number of heavy commercial vehicles (HCVs) will rise by 27%.
• Except in a few states and union territories, such as Delhi and Puducherry, the majority of PM2.5 emissions come from trucks.
• Super-emitters constitute only 23% of the fleet, but they contribute to 62% of PM2.5 emissions.
• Targeting super-emitters can reduce HCV emissions by ~60%.
• Implementing low-emission zones can reduce HCV emissions by 15%–30%, but it is still in a pilot phase in India.

Air pollution, a pressing public health crisis in Indian cities, is significantly driven by the transport sector. Heavy commercial vehicles (HCVs; e.g. buses, trucks, water tankers, and dumpers), comprising only 1.74% of all vehicles, contribute to over 70% of vehicular pollution, particularly particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10). Further, trucks, which constitute the majority of HCVs, dominate HCV emissions due to their high registration numbers and vehicle kilometres travelled (VKT).

Diesel generator (DG) sets, used for power backup across residential, commercial, and industrial sectors, are prominent hyperlocal sources of air and noise pollution throughout India. The current study estimated that a total of 14.7 lakh DG sets, with a capacity of over 5 kVA and a cumulative capacity of 2,72,576 MVA, were operational in India in 2022. These DG sets contributed to 42 Gg of particulate matter with a diameter of 2.5 µm (PM2.5), 23 Gg of black carbon, and 877 Gg of nitrogen oxides (NOX) in India.