2. Quotes
Note: These quotes are from an interview with Arvind Thiruvengadam, one of the people working on the Volkswagen Emissions case, not the author of the article.
"Indian emissions regulations are slightly behind compared to US or Europe. I don't believe the Indian VW cars were affected. But, on a separate note, the air quality problem in India is a serious crisis. The uncontrolled emission from vehicles is one of the primary reasons for bad air quality and increased health risks to population."
"India should consider stricter regulations to enforce advanced technologies in vehicles that would enable them to operate cleaner. This scandal [Volkswagen Emissions Scandal] should be an example to design the future emissions regulation in India to subject manufacturer to strict emissions control."
"India should define a regulation based on unique emissions problem facing the country and not simply adopt standards from other regions of the globe."
"Vehicle tests should be representative of Indian driving conditions and vehicle should be evaluated according to those standards that will alleviate automotive pollution problems in India. Only regulation can drive the inception of advanced technology that will make vehicles cleaner."
3. What is the main point?
This article is an interview with Arvind Thiruvengadam. Thiruvengadam was born in Chennai, India (Madras), though he currently lives in the United States. He was part of the research team at West Virginia University's Center for Alternative Fuel, Engines, and Emissions Lab that discovered the Volkswagen car emission "scandal."
In light of this revealing research, Thiruvengadam says that India needs to establish stricter regulations on emissions. Since India has a particularly high population density, Thiruvengadam believes that Indians are much more exposed to automotive pollution than people in the United States. Also, India needs to work to develop their own, individualized standards that reflect Indian driving conditions, as opposed to adopting regulations already in use by some other country.
4. What actors are referred to?
Volkswagen Cars- The company now facing questioning on their emission control system due to the findings of Thiruvengadam's research group.
West Virginia University's Center for Alternative Fuel, Engines, and Emissions (CAFEE)- The place chosen by the International Council on Clean Transportation to test three European cars' emission rates.
Daniel Carder- Another member of Thiruvengadam's research team, Carder dealt with the logistics of the project, while Thiruvengadam and the other team member, Marc Besch, executed the experiments.
5. What causation or responsibility is implied?
Volkswagen was able to "get away with" covering up their cars emission rates for seven years because of a lack in stringent regulation, among other things. As this information is now available, it is the responsibility of governments everywhere (though particularly India in this article) to develop stricter regulations that suit their individual country's setting and needs.
6. How are health disparities/equity issues addressed?
Thiruvengadam states that India is much more likely to face health issues from automotive pollution than the United States due to their increasing population and population density, especially in and around cities. So, when formulating regulations, the Indian government needs to keep this in mind, so that they do not simply copy what countries like the United States have done to regulate.
7. What points did you follow up on?
The WVU Center for Alternative Fuel, Engines, and Emissions- CAFEE is a non-profit research center based out of West Virginia University. They've developed a mobile emissions laboratory, and performed several tests on heavy-duty vehicles.
site: http://cafee.wvu.edu/
The International Council on Clean Transportation- The ICCT does work around the globe, and presents grants to research groups to collect transportation data for them.
site: http://www.theicct.org/
Prabhakar, Anu. "India Needs Stringent Checks for Cleaner Air." Pune Mirror. Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd., 26 Sept. 2015. Web. 3 Oct. 2015.
http://www.punemirror.in/pune/others/India-needs-stringent-checks-for-cleaner-air/articleshow/49106633.cms
2. Quotes
Note: These quotes are from an interview with Arvind Thiruvengadam, one of the people working on the Volkswagen Emissions case, not the author of the article.
"Indian emissions regulations are slightly behind compared to US or Europe. I don't believe the Indian VW cars were affected. But, on a separate note, the air quality problem in India is a serious crisis. The uncontrolled emission from vehicles is one of the primary reasons for bad air quality and increased health risks to population."
"India should consider stricter regulations to enforce advanced technologies in vehicles that would enable them to operate cleaner. This scandal [Volkswagen Emissions Scandal] should be an example to design the future emissions regulation in India to subject manufacturer to strict emissions control."
"India should define a regulation based on unique emissions problem facing the country and not simply adopt standards from other regions of the globe."
"Vehicle tests should be representative of Indian driving conditions and vehicle should be evaluated according to those standards that will alleviate automotive pollution problems in India. Only regulation can drive the inception of advanced technology that will make vehicles cleaner."
3. What is the main point?
This article is an interview with Arvind Thiruvengadam. Thiruvengadam was born in Chennai, India (Madras), though he currently lives in the United States. He was part of the research team at West Virginia University's Center for Alternative Fuel, Engines, and Emissions Lab that discovered the Volkswagen car emission "scandal."
In light of this revealing research, Thiruvengadam says that India needs to establish stricter regulations on emissions. Since India has a particularly high population density, Thiruvengadam believes that Indians are much more exposed to automotive pollution than people in the United States. Also, India needs to work to develop their own, individualized standards that reflect Indian driving conditions, as opposed to adopting regulations already in use by some other country.
4. What actors are referred to?
Volkswagen Cars- The company now facing questioning on their emission control system due to the findings of Thiruvengadam's research group.
West Virginia University's Center for Alternative Fuel, Engines, and Emissions (CAFEE)- The place chosen by the International Council on Clean Transportation to test three European cars' emission rates.
Daniel Carder- Another member of Thiruvengadam's research team, Carder dealt with the logistics of the project, while Thiruvengadam and the other team member, Marc Besch, executed the experiments.
5. What causation or responsibility is implied?
Volkswagen was able to "get away with" covering up their cars emission rates for seven years because of a lack in stringent regulation, among other things. As this information is now available, it is the responsibility of governments everywhere (though particularly India in this article) to develop stricter regulations that suit their individual country's setting and needs.
6. How are health disparities/equity issues addressed?
Thiruvengadam states that India is much more likely to face health issues from automotive pollution than the United States due to their increasing population and population density, especially in and around cities. So, when formulating regulations, the Indian government needs to keep this in mind, so that they do not simply copy what countries like the United States have done to regulate.
7. What points did you follow up on?
The WVU Center for Alternative Fuel, Engines, and Emissions- CAFEE is a non-profit research center based out of West Virginia University. They've developed a mobile emissions laboratory, and performed several tests on heavy-duty vehicles.
site: http://cafee.wvu.edu/
The International Council on Clean Transportation- The ICCT does work around the globe, and presents grants to research groups to collect transportation data for them.
site: http://www.theicct.org/