Delhi once again finds itself enveloped in a thick blanket of smog with AQI touching an AQI of 349 or 'very poor' category and hapless Delhites are turning to humorous memes for solace. One popular tweet went like this: “Time to give Delhi new namesi: Pollutyens Delhi, Haze Khas, Dhua Kuan and Chandni Choke.”

Apart from the stress busting mirth, citizens of the Capital are hostage to an annualised feature when air pollution swerves between ‘very poor to severe’ levels as the winter sets in, leading to permanent health issues. Delhi has the unfortunate distinction of being the world’s worst polluted capital city. The air is unbreathable, thanks to fully dispersed harmful pollutants – around 40% which comes from vehicular emissions. One survey pegs the financial losses to the Delhi NCR at a very conservative Rs 100 crore/day due to poor air quality.

Been there, done that

To be fair, the state government has tried its best. In 2001, it moved public transport to CNG as fuel, levied charges on commercial ICE vehicles, banned 10-year-old diesel and 15-year-old petrol vehicles and introduced the odd-even car numbers initiative The Delhi EV Policy was framed to encourage greater use of public transport and a viable supply-chain ecosystem through a combination of fiscal and non-fiscal incentives.

Initiatives like “Switch Delhi,” unveiled in early 2021 to create mass awareness and the ongoing 'Red Light On, Gaadi Off' campaign are well intended. Yet, Delhiites continue to bear the brunt of pollution emanating from within and from nearby states.

Delhi struggles to meet EV targets

Despite a target of 25% EVs in new vehicle registrations by 2023-24, Delhi could manage around 12% in the fiscal. While higher than other states, it’s a poor record given the pollution levels. Even after compulsory scrapping of old diesel and petrol vehicles in 2021, the city still has 472 vehicles per 1,000 people. Between 2012- 2024, the share of personal vehicles registered was around 92%, but EV 4-wheelers, with just 3% share, have struggled to take off.

Regulatory action and financial incentives are inducing some growth in commercial EV segments, but this has to be accompanied by a parallel or superlative growth in personal EVs, to address the pollution crisis.

Look East, Look West

New Delhi can take a few cues from Norway and Nepal – countries that have notched up amazing results in pollution reduction and long-term environmental benefits with their commitments to EV adoption. Norway, a country with a population of 5.5 million and an oil and gas producer, has achieved a 35% reduction in C02 emissions since 2012, improving both air quality and public health. Oslo has the highest per capita number of EVs in the world due to a strict adoption target, generous tax rebates and strategic incentivisation of EV users. With EVs accounting for over 90% of its new car registrations, the world will have to scale up the EV adoption roughly as fast as Norway, if it must meet any net zero targets.

Closer home, EVs account for 50% of Nepal’s overall vehicle sales (as of FY24) thanks to sustained incentives and low taxes amid a nationwide urgency to cut down energy imports.  With nearly all its energy coming from renewable river-fed hydroelectricity, Nepal is focusing on infrastructure development to support EV ownership.

Real solution to pollution kept at bay

With the fast-growing economy creating higher disposable income for its huge middle-class, each passing year, the desire for personal mobility will always be on the rise. One perpetual casualty will be air quality. A Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) study in Delhi, Kanpur, Bengaluru, Pune, Chennai, and Mumbai categorically concludes that the transport sector will continue to emit most of the Nox, and around 50% of PM2.5 emissions in these cities, if we keep away from greener transportation.

Studies show that subsidies are not a magic bullet unless the switch to EV is made too good to ignore for a customer. Starting with attractive subsidies, customers can be lured by parking benefits, besides manufacturer-offered incentives for upgrades. Most importantly, a modern EV policy with a strong commitment to achieving targets from all authorities would comfort buyers in areas like charging infrastructure. Since many are not fully aware of the need to switch to EVs, regular campaigns must be undertaken.

Big cities may pollute more, but smaller and emerging ones are not far behind; every year new towns in Tier 2 and Tier 3 India are making to the WHO’s most-polluted cities list. Unless there’s collective will to fast-track EV adoption, Delhi’s air pollution will always get tossed around in inter-state bickering and internal political rivalries with fewer solutions.

— The author is the founder of Centre of Excellence for Research in Climate Change and Air Pollution, IIT Delhi