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The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has asked governments of Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Haryana, Punjab and Rajasthan to explain their stand on making CNG main fuel for vehicles. It has also asked Union Government to provide details of CNG stations being planned and future course of action. This move is crucial as earlier NGT had ordered a ban on 10 year old diesel vehicles and other steps to deal with air pollution in NCR region.

CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) is essentially methane stored at high pressure. CNG combustion produces fewer gases than petrol or diesel fuel. It has lower maintenance cost, does not spill and requires more space to store.

In 1996, CSE published its report on urban air pollution. This report found that the problem of vehicular pollution in India was the result of a combination of outdated engine technology, poor fuel quality, defective transportation planning and bad maintenance of vehicles on the read. No statistics of energy input and pollution output were available, put it was estimated that vehicles were responsible for 64% of emissions (power production for 17, industry for 10%).

The Supreme Court had passed a judgment (MC Mehta vs. Union of India, 2001 (2) SCR 698) where all commercial vehicles in Delhi were directed to be fitted with CNG kit. Although there was hue and cry, legal challenges and financial implications, most of the commercial vehicles were running on CNG by 2005.

However the vehicular population in NCR region has risen up dramatically due to development in satellite cities and more demand. So once again NCR is suffering from toxic pollution and both NGT and Supreme Court have passed necessary orders to curb this extent.

The latest endeavour of NGT is to ensure that vehicles which are not registered in Delhi also have to follow Supreme Court order on NGT. Another aspect of this endeavour is get private vehicles within the ambit of CNG. Many have argued that exclusion of private vehicles from the strict environmental regulations is unfair and it only adds to the burden of commercial vehicles owners. The law has traditionally taken side of private vehicle owners and have tried to regulate commercial vehicles. One such example is that of Green Tax which was imposed by Supreme Court on all commercial vehicles which are passing through Delhi and destined to travel to other states. To solve this, government is constructing two expressways so that vehicles which are destined for other states do not have to enter Delhi.

However the feasibility of such measures in reducing air pollution needs to be examined. Earlier the Supreme Court has banned high end diesel SUVs but later relented and allowed these vehicles with green tax. Not all entry points in Delhi are manned and commercial vehicles are able to bypass green tax and enter Delhi.

Clearly these are short-terms measures which will simply incur financial implications and improve nothing on the ground. One needs to examine and look at the reasons behind vehicular pollution. The answer lies with the public transportation system. The NCR region is lucky to have a robust public transport system comprising of Metro, Buses, App- Based Taxis and Autos. Still, the burden on public transport is immense and many would not prefer to travel through them because of comfort and security concerns. The transport department and Delhi traffic police is understaffed and regular drives are not conducted to check vehicles for violation of norms. Also, PUC (Pollution under Control) certificates are simply a formality as one can easily bribe concerned officials.

It is also surprising that focus that been on vehicular pollution only when industrial pollution and road dust are worst culprits and have escaped strict scrutiny. It must be collective effort of citizens, governments and courts to stop air pollution and provide a better environment to our future generations.