India has for long lagged behind its western counterparts in checking vehicular emission at the source. Most developed countries have stringent factory checks in place to ensure vehicles coming out meet the tight norms already in place. The gap though may soon be closing with Supreme Court banning sale and registration of BS III vehicles from April 1.
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While several grumbling automakers in India may have their own full form, BS actually stands for Bharat Stage - emission standards established by the Indian government to limit air pollutants coming out of internal combustion engines like those found in motor vehicles.
BS regulations are similar to European emission standards, and seeks to curb emission levels from motor vehicles.
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The first emission norms in India were introduced in 1991 for petrol and the next year for diesel vehicles. In around 2005 and 2006, BS III was rolled out in NCR and several other cities in a bid to check on pollution. This was almost similar to European standards (Euro III) which was in place between 2000 and 2005 in most western nations.
While India implemented BS III norms across the nation only in 2010, other developed nations had moved onto Euro 4 (January, 2005), Euro 5 (September, 2009) and Euro 6 (September, 2014). Each progression meant stricter emission norms.
Now, BS IV will be in place for all new vehicles in India starting April 1 but that has not gone down too well with several auto manufacturers.
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While a few auto companies have welcomed the decision to implement BS IV, many are saying they were not given enough time to update technology and to dispose off their existing BS III stock.
After Supreme Court on Wednesday said health of citizens was far more important than commercial interests, Mahindra and Mahindra in statement said that while it respects the apex court's decision, the 'unexpected ruling will have a one-time material impact.'
Tata Motors too said that the decision of the apex court was a penalty. "The Supreme Court order banning sale of all BS-III vehicles from April 1 is an unexpected and unprecedented move that will have a material impact on the entire automotive industry, OEMs' and dealer networks and is a penalty to the entire automotive industry," the largest commercial vehicles manufacturer in the country said in a statement.
The issue with updating vehicles to meet newer norms is that companies have to spend time and resources to develop/modify engines. They also then need to implement changes at the factory-level. Some, like Toyota, implemented BS IV technology a year back , many either didn't or are in the process of doing so.
Companies have also repeatedly highlighted the need for cleaner fuels which are imperative for making newer norms a success. Some say that the ground reality is not conducive enough for BS IV to kick in.
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Supreme Court though has the health of people as its prime priority. Indian cities are fast becoming notorious toxic chambers with vehicular emissions playing a big role in contributing to the potential disaster.
Several environmental bodies and experts have praised the apex court's decision. They say the move from BS III to BS IV will significantly reduce pollution caused by motor vehicles.
"This is a significant step forward as this gives the message and the lesson that the automobile industry will have to walk the extra mile to address the expansive concern around public health and not weigh down the transition by taking a very narrow technical view," Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director, Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), was quoted as saying by PTI.
In summary then, while some of the concerns of automakers are indeed legitimate, it is mostly agreed that Supreme Court's decision is far nobler and puts people first. India has already decided to skip BS V and implement BS VI by 2020. This will go a long way in putting the country at par with emission standards in place elsewhere.