Studies show that vehicles are a major source of pollutants that cause climate change. Cutting down on vehicular emission will also result in better air quality in cities. In a bid to bring down pollution levels, the Central government has announced that from April 1, 2020, all vehicles sold in India should comply with Bharat Stage-VI, or BS-VI emission standards.
The Bharat Stage emission standards are the legal limits on the amount of air pollutants like carbon monoxide and particulate matter that a vehicle in India can emit. These standards are targeted at making improvements in three areas -- emission control, fuel efficiency and engine design.
India is currently operating on the BS-IV emission norms. In 2016, the government made a decision to jump BS-V and implement BS-VI in the country. While automobile manufactures are making available vehicles that comply with the new norms, oil companies will have to provide fuel that meet these standards. BS-VI standard fuel is said to be the world’s cleanest fuel.
What makes BS-VI fuel better?
Sulphur content in fuel is a major cause for concern. Sulphur dioxide released by fuel burning is a major pollutant that affects health as well. BS-VI fuel's sulphur content is much lower than BS-IV fuel. It is reduced to 10 mg/kg max in BS-VI from 50 mg/kg under BS-IV.
This reduction makes it possible to equip vehicles with better catalytic converters that capture pollutants. However, BS-VI fuel is expected to be costlier that BS-IV fuel. Vehicles that are compliant with BS-VI will also be more expensive.
