Bangalore has not been the best place for an asthmatic person. The way things are going, it may be best to avoid the city if you have lung problems. An international study done in the UK has shown how exposure to vehicular pollution aggravates the situation for asthamatics.

Published in the New England Journal of Medicine it looked at the impact of pollution originating from diesel on people with mild to moderate asthma. And found that inflammation increased during a walk on Oxford Street where diesel-powered buses and taxis alone ply. A walk along Hyde Park with its absence of traffic was largely uneventful.

Yet another study by Swiss scientists showed that lung function deteriorated not only with age but also with air pollution. A notable conclusion of that study was that even small reductions of particulate matter (very small particles in the air) meant large benefits for the lungs.

Both studies worked in places with pollution levels below the WHO levels. In India, our national guideline levels are much higher than WHO levels, almost by three times. Yet most cities, including Bangalore, have particulate levels higher than the guidelines! It would be no exaggeration to imagine the insides of our lungs and air pipe as black as the tail pipes of vehicles. We are breathing the emissions.

A significant contribution to this air pollution in our cities is from vehicles, and in particular from diesel vehicles. A CSE study has come out with the vast emission differences between diesel and petrol cars sold in India. It claims that Euro III diesel cars emit as much as 7.5 times more particulate matter than petrol cars, which means, every diesel car amounts to 7.5 petrol cars added to the road.

The emissions from a diesel car have been shown to be carcinogenic in effect. The International Agency for Research of Cancer (IARC), WHO, United States Environmental Protection Agency, etc have classified diesel emissions as carcinogenic.

That diesel cars give more mileage and are more fuel efficient and have low carbon emissions are also points still debated. As more cars running on diesel are added to the roads, diesel with a larger carbon content will end up giving more carbon di-oxide emissions in total.This has been seen in the UK where particulate emissions first decreased due to technology advancements but were offset when diesel cars became the norm.

According to the CSE press release, diesel cars account for 30 percent of the car sales today in the country and are expected to rise. Ironically, even the high-end luxury cars are fitted with diesel engines with a view to cheaper fuel! It invites 40 percent lesser tax than petrol. Internationally diesel was made available at cheaper prices with a view to encourage public transport.

In this scenario, the move by the Delhi government to discourage diesel vehicles should be followed by other states too. Alternately, they could opt for lower sulphur content in diesel. Or, as CSE suggests, at least tax diesel vehicles higher as a disincentive. Vehicle standards in terms of fuel efficiency and emissions are still not rigorously demanded in the country. In the US emission standards are uniform for all fuels and there is strict control of sulphur content. A far cry from India where the levels are 30 times higher!

When waste oil is reused, kerosene and white petrol obtained from textile industry used by the vehicles on our roads unchecked by authorities, what else can we expect than more lung ailments? Aiding the whole process is a government that gives incentives to car makers, ‘cheap’ cars and cheaper loans inviting the burgeoning population to take to the wheels. Public transport remains totally neglected and as a World Bank report showed, this sector bears a larger tax burden than private vehicles!

Unless the public transport is efficient, there is no use expecting people to stop using private vehicles. It is no secret that in a city like Bangalore the public transport, whether buses or the most errant autorickshaws, are woefully inadequate to meet the demands of its commuters.

For the middle class opting for a car, naturally a cheaper option is tempting, pollution or no pollution. It is finally about day to day survival.