Car insurance has come a fair distance in India. Of course, the premiums you pay don't have much to do with anything other than the value of your car, but that might change soon, beginning with the Delhi-NCR region.
The Delhi government has stated that it is looking into the possibility of linking insurance premiums to emissions of cars. A plan has been prepared with the help of the Centre for Science and Environment. The plan is to give insurance benefits to those vehicles that meet or exceed emission requirements. The government will also review the emission norms for two and three-wheelers, which also contribute significantly to pollution but whose norms are still very relaxed.
Interestingly, the government has also stated that it will look into fuel quality issues to reduce benzene emissions, like planning a vapour recovery system at fuel stations. No mention was made of tackling the problem of quality of fuel itself.
If these measures get implemented, it definitely means improvement in the quality of air. However, we're skeptical about its proper implementation considering not many take pollution seriously when it comes to vehicular pollution since it isn't a immediate problem.
