CAQM introduces new norms for diesel generators in Delhi-NCR

The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) on Thursday issued a schedule for regulations on diesel generators (DG) sets in the National Capital Region.

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Under this, DG sets with a capacity of over 19 kilowatts (kW) will only be allowed to operate from October 1, 2023, onwards if they are equipped with either retrofitted emission control devices (ECDs) or dual fuel kits of natural gas and diesel. CAQM said these conditions will be applicable even when the Graded Response Action Plan (Grap) is not in place, asking those who had not yet retrofitted their DG sets to do so before the deadline.

In the schedule released on Thursday, CAQM said for portable DG sets with capacity below 19kW, or generator sets running on LPG, natural gas, biogas, propane or butane, no retrofitting would be needed, stating they will also not be restricted during Grap.

For DG sets with capacity between 19kW and 125kW, they will be required to run on a dual fuel mode. For such DG sets, CAQM said, there will be no restrictions on their use, except during Grap, when they will be permitted to run for a maximum of two hours a day.

For DG sets with a power capacity of 125kW to 800kW, CAQM said they will be required to be run on a dual fuel mode and will also have to be retrofitted with ECDs. However, there will be no restrictions on such DG sets, even during Grap.

For sets with a capacity of over 800kW, the operators must either retrofit them with dual fuel kits or with ECDs, with such sets again facing restrictions only during Grap, where they will be allowed to run for a maximum of two hours.

It also said that all new power generating sets with a capacity of up to 800kW were now being procured as per the standards laid out by the ministry of environment, forest and climate change (MoEFCC) via its notification dated November 3, 2022, which had made the norms more stringent. Such new sets had no restrictions in place, even during Grap.

Through its latest order, CAQM said it had revised the norms for operation of DG sets “across all sectors” including industrial area, commercial, residential and office establishments, stating this had been done to comprehensively and effectively prevent, control and abate air pollution caused by the DG sets in the region.

“Retro-fitment of dual fuel kits and/or emission control devices (ECDs), wherever warranted, needs to be targeted to be completed latest by September 30, 2023, failing which the use of the DG set shall not be permitted under any circumstances, anywhere in the entire NCR, even for periods not under Grap restrictions,” said CAQM on Thursday.

It further clarified that there will be no exemptions under Grap, unlike previous years, where DG sets were allowed at essential and emergent services like lifts, interstate bus terminals, airports, healthcare facilities, Metro stations, sewage treatment plants or telecommunication and data service institutes.

While ECDs are devices fitted at the exhaust of the machines to trap the pollutants like particulate matters and gases being emitted, the dual fuel mode kits will allow a machine to operate on multiple fuels like diesel and natural gas. CAQM has said that the retrofitting or modifications must be done through authorised vendors before October this year.

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Anumita Roy Chowdhury, executive director, research and advocacy at the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), says the move to phase out DGs is an important step in improving the air quality in the region. “These emissions can be a sustained source and can lead to toxic exposure for individuals over time. In addition to comprehensive guidelines for retrofitment of ECDs and monitoring, we also need to ensure an uninterrupted power supply throughout NCR and for that, CAQM needs to work with discoms,” she said.