Management Aptitude Test Dec 2013 Paper

Passage 2
The Supreme Court wants to find out whether additional taxes on diesel cars can curb air pollution. But evidence from Europe, where around half o f the automobiles are diesel-based and the air is far cleaner than in our cities, demonstrates that diesel cars cannot by themselves be blamed for deterioration in air quality and evidence from the Central Pollution Control Board clearly shows that industries, road dust from construction and geography account for most of the particulate matter emission in cities. Power plants and diesel generators also increase, pollution and the bulk of the transport emissions are on account of heavy commercial vehicles that use much older technologies than new diesel cars. Undoubtedly, adulteration of diesel with subsidised kerosene adds to the problem. So, a tax on new diesel cars is too blunt an instrument which certainly will not yield clean air. It could, in fact, skew the market towards used rather than new cars which would not only hurt the automobile industry but also generate further air pollution. Cleaning the air in our cities would require concerted efforts by authorities Including deregulation o f diesel prices, ending sale of subsidised kerosene and supply of better quality fuel. It would also require a significant improvement in public transport systems and better enforcement of pollution control norms. The solution, therefore, is not so much in constraining the industry with new taxes, but in pushing through positive measures that enable people to earn their livelihoods while also breathing clean air.