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The Rediff Business Special/ Veeresh Malik

Auto industry says it's clean, fuel in India is not

Row over the Euro norms for cars

The operative part of the Supreme Court order

'No comments please, the case is sub-judice'

Maruti's new models likely to be Euro-II-fit

What about other manufacturers? Bar none, all of them have volumes so small that changing over to Euro-II norms would not take much by way of effort. In all cases, there would, obviously, be a cost element involved.

So what's the real problem, then?

One problem is, India comprises large number of consumers and buyers of possibly the worst grades of liquid fuels, unusable anywhere else in sufficient quantities.

The oil industry claims there is nothing wrong with the fuel sold in India. They are, however, unable to guarantee that the fuel sold from the filling stations they operate is in order.

But this brings us back to the original question: Have the automobile manufacturers in India been guilty of polluting more than they should? The answer can only be: as much as the part of the larger system that they happen to work within. They continue to use obsolete and cheaper technology at high prices, no doubt.

However, the industry is quick to point out that the fuel, the roads and the absence of an inspection or maintenance programme go against them.

Environmentalist Anil Agarwal is convinced that diesel is the worst polluter on our roads. Agarwal is now facing a law suit filed by Telco. The company threatens him with Rs 1 billion in damages for taking a stand against Indian automobile manufacturers.

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The Supreme Court order on auto emissions and its impact on industry

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