THE SAGA OF REGULATING INDIA’S THERMAL POWER EMISSIONS

Copyright infringement not intended Picture Courtesy:  The Hindu Context: The Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has delayed the deadline for thermal plants to comply with sulphur dioxide emission norms by three years. SO₂ emission norms for thermal power plants India introduced strict SO₂ emission norms for thermal power plants in December 2015, aligning with international best practices. These norms aimed to curb air pollution, improve public health, and reduce environmental degradation caused by sulphur dioxide emissions, which contribute to respiratory illnesses and the formation of harmful secondary aerosols. India has delayed SO₂ emission compliance four times since 2015. Government has extended the deadline for SO₂ emission norms multiple times due to: Thermal power plants argued that meeting the original 2017 deadline was unrealistic due to high costs and technical challenges. Many plants were not ready to install FGD sys...