AN INTRODUCTORY REVIEW OF VEHICULAR AIR POLLUTIONIN INDIA

Air is the ocean we breathe. Air supplies us with oxygen which is
essential for our bodies to live. Air is 99.9% nitrogen, oxygen, water
vapor and inert gases. Human activities can release substances into the
air, some of which can cause problems for humans, plants, and animals.
Air pollution has been aggravated by developments that typically occur
as countries become industrialized: growing cities, increasing traffic,
rapid economic development and industrialization, and higher levels of
energy consumption. The high influxes of population to urban areas,
increase in consumption patterns and unplanned urban and industrial
development have led to the problem of air pollution. Currently, in
India, air pollution is widespread in urban areas where vehicles are the
major contributors and in a few other areas with a high concentration of
industries and thermal power plants. Vehicular emissions are of
particular concern since these are ground level sources and thus have the
maximum impact on the general population. Also, vehicles contribute
significantly to the total air pollution load in many urban areas.