Bengaluru Urban Ranks High in PM2.5 Emissions from Diesel Generators

Quick Summary

• Report Findings: A study by the Center for Study of Science, technology and Policy (CSTEP) finds Bengaluru Urban ranks among the highest districts in India for PM2.5 emissions from diesel generator (DG) sets across multiple categories.
• District Rankings:

– bengaluru Urban ranks:
– 3rd in the 5-75 kVA DG sets category.
– 2nd in the 76-375 kVA category.
– 3rd in the 376-750 kVA category.- 6th in above-750 kVA DG sets category.

• Belagavi (Karnataka) ranked 10th for PM2.5 emissions in the 76-375 kVA DG set category; other prominent districts include Patna, Gautam Buddha Nagar, Mumbai city, and North 24 Parganas.

• national Data on DG Sets:

– India had approximately 14.7 lakh operational DG sets above a capacity of over 5 kVA with a collective capacity of 272,576 MVA as of 2022.
– These contributed to notable air pollution:
– 42 Gg PM2.5,
– 23 Gg black carbon,
– 877 Gg nitrogen oxides (NOx).

• Frequent power cuts persistently drive increased use of DG sets across states like Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, and maharashtra.

Indian Opinion Analysis

The high levels of PM2.5 emissions linked to diesel generators underscore pressing concerns about energy infrastructure deficiencies and growing environmental challenges for urban centers like Bengaluru Urban. While frequent power outages necessitate reliance on backup power systems such as DG sets, their widespread usage contributes substantially to local air quality degradation-a crucial issue considering India’s struggles with pollution control measures.

This report highlights systemic gaps across renewable energy adoption or grid reliability that might reduce dependence on polluting technologies such as aging or poorly serviced diesel generators-termed “super emitters.” Furthermore, Karnataka’s inclusion among top emitters reinforces regional disparities where reliance on backup generation impacts environmental sustainability disproportionately amid commercial growth-driven industrial hubs transitioning eco future pathways balance cards remain set vertical scaling