BMC, ARAI join hands to develop inventory of polluting emissions
Once emissions from major sectors are identified, the data will be used for the proposed Air Quality Early Warning System (AQEWS) and Decision Support System (DSS), being developed by the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) in Pune.
3 min readMumbaiUpdated: Dec 21, 2025 08:34 PM IST
Over a period of three years, emissions from major sectors, including industries, road dust, and construction sites, among other sources, will be studied and quantified. (Express File Photo)
In a bid to identify pollution hotspots and develop an early warning system for air quality in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), with the Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI), has kicked off a project to develop a high resolution inventory of polluting emissions across Mumbai, Thane and Navi Mumbai.
Over a period of three years, the “MMR Gridded Emissions Inventory Project” will study and quantify emissions from major sectors, including industries, road dust, construction sites, residential fuel use, waste burning, aircraft operation and hotels, among other sources.
Once identified, the data will be used for the proposed Air Quality Early Warning System (AQEWS) and Decision Support System (DSS), being developed by the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) in Pune.
According to BMC officials, the project seeks to analyse physical properties of the pollutants to determine the major sources of pollution in a particular area. “Our goal is to identify major sources of pollution so that the right course of corrective measures can be taken,” a senior official from the BMC told The Indian Express.
Earlier this year, the BMC awarded the letter of acceptance on the project in October.
According to officials, such studies have previously been conducted in cities like Delhi. “The data that is being analysed is very dynamic. In order to validate the data over a period of time, the study will look at the sources over a period of three years and look at historical data,” said an official.
During the course of their study, data collection will entail survey and mapping of vehicle counts, residential fuel use, construction sites with the inventory analysing the data hourly, monthly as well as chemical specifications ranging from PM and VOC profiles. To incorporate seasonal shifts, the inventory of emissions will be updated every six months.
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With Mumbai having identified its sources in the Mumbai Climate Action Plan (MCAP), officials said that the inventory project will update the data for the city. In the neighbouring cities of Thane and Raigad, the project seeks to collect fresh inventory on emissions with the objective of devising mitigation plans.
The efforts to develop a new warning system comes amid the city as well as the extended Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) witnessing deteriorating air quality over the past three years. Earlier this month, the BMC also launched the Mumbai Air Network for Advanced The (MANAS) — which is going to be an independent platform powered by Artificial Intelligence (AI) and run by the civic body to track Mumbai’s overall Air Quality Index (AQI) and combat the issue of plummeting AQI.
Nayonika Bose is a Senior Correspondent with The Indian Express’ Mumbai bureau. While in the early stages of her career, her focused reporting on local governance and community welfare already demonstrates clear Expertise and Trustworthiness in covering essential civic issues impacting Mumbai's residents.
Expertise & Authority (E-E-A-T)
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