Workshop held in Delhi brought together stakeholders in the sector taking the conversation forward on the implementation of LEZs in Indian cities

February 19 (New Delhi, India) — The ICCT in collaboration with NITI Aayog organized a one-day workshop on Low Emission Zones (LEZs) in Indian cities. The workshop was attended by over 100 people representing various departments of the national and state governments, inter-governmental organizations, private sector, civil society, academia and practitioners.

LEZs, designated areas where certain vehicles, particularly those with high emissions, are restricted or prohibited, have proven effective in reducing air pollution worldwide. Additionally, LEZs play a crucial role in promoting the adoption of electric vehicles, aligning with the government’s proactive advocacy in this area.

The workshop was organised in association with the Raahgiri Foundation & Sustainable Mobility Network. During the workshop, best practices for LEZ implementation in Indian cities were discussed and a roadmap for future actions was formulated.

Amitabh Kant, G20 Sherpa, delivered the keynote address, saying “India is lagging behind in the LEZs space. There should be emphasis on institutional convergence and coordination in transport; concentric and integrated urban design models and leveraging technology and combining different types of technology in design and implementation”.

Sudhendu J. Sinha Adviser, NITI Aayog in his special address said, “The evolution of LEZs globally has been very interesting. We should consider practical and equity-related challenges in design.”

Amit Bhatt, India Managing Director, ICCT, said, “Low-emission Zones (LEZs) are a high-impact solutions to rapidly scale up transportation decarbonisation. They are geographically demarcated areas in cities where the movement of polluting vehicles is regulated, and a series of mobility interventions are put in place to further control and mitigate vehicular emissions and improve air quality.”

Sarika Panda, Co-founder, Raahgiri Day; and Associate Director, Nagarro said, “Sustainable progress in Low Emission Zones (LEZ) hinges on collaboration between industry leaders and citizens, ensuring holistic development. It’s crucial to educate both city stakeholders on the broader social and economic impacts, emphasizing an approach that benefits all citizens. Our focus should be on impactful implementation, requiring enhanced capacity within government departments.”

Participants in the day-long workshop included Kranti Sambhav, Editor, OVERDRIVE, Network18 Media; Sonal Jain, Urban and Regional Development Advisor, GIZ; Vivek Vaidyanathan, Principal, Artha Global; Aswathy Dilip, South-Asia Director, Institute for Transportation & Development Policy (ITDP); Hitesh Vaidya, Former Director, National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA), S K Lohia, Senior Advisor (Rail & Urban Mobility), World Bank; S S Bajaj IFS, Chairman, Naya Raipur Development Authority; Namita Gupta, Founder, AirVeda; Subrata Mitra, Senior Vice President Ather Energy; Siddharth Sinha, Geo and Climate Policy Lead, Google India; Abhijeet Sinha, Project Director – National Highways for Electric Vehicles; Arindam Roy, Climate Science Advisor, Clean Air Fund; Sudeept Maiti, Independent Consultant; Nitin Panigrahi, DGM (Projects), Shahjahanabad Redevelopment Corporation, Government of NCT of Delhi; and Nidhi Madan, Associate Director–Climate Policy, Shakti Sustainable Energy Foundation.

About the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT)
The International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) is an independent research organization providing first-rate, unbiased research and technical and scientific analysis to environmental regulators. Our mission is to improve the environmental performance and energy efficiency of road, marine, and air transportation, in order to benefit public health and mitigate climate change. Founded in 2001, we are a nonprofit organization working under grants and contracts from private foundations and public institutions.

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About NITI Aayog

NITI Aayog is a public policy think tank of the Government of India, established with the aim to achieve sustainable development goals with cooperative federalism by fostering the involvement of state governments of India in the economic policy-making process using a bottom-up approach.

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