India’s robust transport sector leaves an unsustainable carbon footprint on cities affecting the health of citizens
Buses that run on biofuels will mitigate both pollution and congestion.
What are the concerns of transport sector?
The transport sector will add more than 250 million passenger cars, 185 million two- and three-wheelers, and 30 million trucks and vans to the vehicle stock by 2040.
The transport sector is the second largest contributor to carbon dioxide.
In addition to the health costs of pollution, fossil fuel dependency of the sector continues to burden the exchequer.
What are the issues with government’s plan on e-mobility?
National Electric Mobility Mission Plan 2020 was also introduced to promote the use of electricity in road transportation.
It is aimed to support a target of level of 6 to 7 million hybrid and electric vehicles by 2020.
But relying on e-mobility alone will not accomplish India’s ambition to create a sustainable and green transport on a pan-India basis.
Many evidence so far suggests that market uptake of pure electric vehicles has been largely confined to scooters and there is no rapid rollout of electric buses and cars.
Even if there is rapid adoption of electric cars, the problem of congestion is increasing due private vehicle growth, government is yet to formulate plans to address this.
What are bio fuels?
Biofuels are fuels produced directly or indirectly from organic material, including plant materials and animal waste.
Sewage treatment plants are a gold mine for vehicular fuel and currently generate around 70 billion litres of waste-water every day.
Bio- fuels can be generated from local municipal waste and used in Public and private vehicles to address pollution.
Biofuels may also be derived from forestry, agricultural or fishery products or municipal wastes, as well as from agro-industry, food industry and food service by-products and wastes.
This will provide additional incomes to the farmers and will reduce government’s exchequer.
What measures needs to be taken on bio-fuel initiatives?
Rapid adoption of bio-fuels requires government support to all stakeholders to manufacture biofuel engines, suppliers of biofuels and of course fuelling infrastructure.
By building biogas generation and upgrading facilities at the Sewage Treatment Plants, the output can possibly substitute 350 million litres of diesel, and over 8 million LPG cylinders of 14.2 kg capacity.
Such projects need urgent attention and fiscal support from Central and State governments.
There have been no fiscal incentives to encourage biofuel-based mass transport, buses which can run on biofuel now attract 28 per cent GST plus 15 per cent cess this needs to be addressed.
