Air Pollution
Revised GRAP: Earlier Controls and Wider Dust Oversight
Why in News? The revised GRAP schedule approved by CAQM on 28 September 2026 brings selected controls into an earlier stage and extends construction-dust monitoring beyond municipal boundaries. Actions concerning diesel generator sets and entry of buses meeting BS-IV or lower standards move from Stage II to Stage I. Sonipat joins the listed districts covered…
Keep Reading →Delhi EV Policy: Two-Wheeler Transition and Urban Mobility
Why in News? Indian Express Explained reported on Delhi's electric-vehicle policy debate and why the shift matters when two-wheelers form a large share of the city's vehicle base. The issue is important for UPSC because transport emissions, affordability, charging networks, and urban air quality sit together in the clean-mobility transition. Two-wheelers are central to mass…
Keep Reading →Heat Plus Ozone: The Hidden Driver of India’s Cardiac Deaths
Why in News? A study reported by The Hindu and the Indian Express (June 2026) finds that heatwaves occurring alongside high levels of ground-level (tropospheric) ozone significantly increase cardiac and cardiovascular deaths in India — the two stressors together prove far more lethal than either acting alone. The finding reframes extreme heat as not just…
Keep Reading →Delhi EV Policy 2026: Beyond Subsidies to a Market-Driven Transition
The Delhi EV policy 2026 is doing something unusual in Indian clean mobility. It's deliberately stepping back from blanket purchase subsidies and moving toward a market-driven model that uses infrastructure, mandates, and behavioral nudges as its primary tools. After roughly five years of generous incentives that pushed Delhi to one of the highest EV penetration…
Keep Reading →Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981: Provisions, Powers, UPSC
The Air Act, 1981 is India's central air pollution law, born of the 1972 Stockholm Conference. Full UPSC guide on objectives, powers of CPCB and SPCBs, the 1987 noise amendment, NCAP linkage, penalties, and challenges.
Keep Reading →Green Fireworks: CSIR-NEERI’s Cleaner Crackers Explained
Green fireworks reduce particulate emissions by 30 to 40 percent versus traditional crackers. CSIR-NEERI chemistry, SWAS-STAR-SAFAL types, PESO certification, and Supreme Court rulings explained for UPSC.
Keep Reading →Revised SO₂ Norms for Thermal Power Plants: What India’s 2025 Notification Changes
India's 2025 SO2 norms exempt 75% of thermal capacity (Category C) and shift Category B to case-by-case. Why MoEFCC relaxed rules, FGD timeline, and UPSC analysis.
Keep Reading →Major Air Pollutants in India: Sources, Health Impacts, and Mitigation
Detailed UPSC guide to major air pollutants in India: PM2.5, PM10, NO2, SO2, ozone, CO, ammonia, VOCs, lead. Sources, health impacts, and policy.
Keep Reading →State of India’s Environment 2026: Seven Planetary Boundaries Breached, GDP Bleeds 4-6%
The Centre for Science and Environment released its State of India's Environment 2026 in late April 2026, and the verdict is sobering. The State of India's Environment 2026 reports that seven of the nine planetary boundaries are now breached, India is losing roughly 4% to 6% of GDP annually to heat stress, and almost every…
Keep Reading →China Dealt with Air Pollution, lesson for India
Context: Every winter, northern India—especially Delhi-NCR—faces severe air pollution. China faced a similar crisis in the early 2010s (“Airpocalypse”), but achieved 35–50% reduction in PM2.5 within a few years. The article examines what China did, and what India can learn. UPSC Relevance: Environment UPSC PYQ: Q: Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata are the three mega cities…
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