This policy brief examines the potential role that India could play in global commons management while outlining the power credentials that allow her to shape norms of state behaviour in those commons. Inter alia, it makes a case for India to work with the major poles in the international system to repurpose the currently dormant UN Trusteeship Council to institute an effective collective governance mechanism for global commons management.
The World Health Organization (WHO) recently (Sep 2021) released its revised Air Quality Guidelines (AQGs) which have been made more stringent compared to their earlier guidelines. This raises the question whether India’s National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) notified by the MoEFCC in 2009 are adequate and whether the revised WHO AQGs are relevant for India.
The NIAS Transition Plan for Thermal Power Plants (TPPs) recommends the progressive retirement of obsolete TPPs while shifting the load to existing and under-construction, modern TPPs and Nuclear Power Plants (NPPs) instead of retrofitting them with costly Flue Gas Desulfurisers (FGDs). Stack heights mandated for TPPs in India are designed to disperse SO2 emissions to ensure that ambient air SO2 levels comply with National standards.