Bharat Stage Emission norms

Subject: Environment

Context:

The Supreme Court recalled its March 27 order which allowed automobile dealers 10 days time, immediately after lockdown is lifted, to sell 10 per cent of their stock of BS-IV emission norm-compliant vehicles.

Concept:

• The Bharat Stage emission standards are standards instituted by the government to regulate the output of air pollutants from motor vehicles from internal combustion engine equipment, including motor vehicles.
• India has been following European (Euro) emission norms, although with a time lag of five years. 

• The BS IV norms had been enforced across the country since April 2017.
• In 2016, the Centre had announced that the country would skip the BS-V norms altogether and adopt BS-VI norms by 2020.
• Implementation of the intermediate BS-V standard was originally scheduled for 2019.
• The main difference in standards between the existing BS-IV and the new BS-VI auto fuel norms is the presence of sulphur.
• The BS-VI fuel is estimated to bring around an 80 per cent reduction of sulphur, from 50 parts per million to 10 ppm. According to analysts, the emission of NOx (nitrogen oxides) from diesel cars is also expected to come down by nearly 70 per cent and 25 per cent from cars with petrol engines.