NDC
Nationally Determined Contributions - India's climate commitments under Paris Agreement
ECBC
Energy Conservation Building Code - mandatory standards for commercial buildings
EPR
Extended Producer Responsibility - producers responsible for end-of-life management
PAT
Perform, Achieve and Trade - industrial energy efficiency trading scheme
Mtoe
Million tonnes of oil equivalent - standard energy measurement
TWh
Terawatt-hours - electricity measurement (1 TWh = 1 billion kWh)
BRT
Bus Rapid Transit - dedicated bus lanes for efficient public transport
TOD
Transit-Oriented Development - urban planning around transit stations
NCAP
National Clean Air Programme - initiative to reduce air pollution in 131 cities
CAAQMS
Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Stations - real-time monitoring by CPCB
PM2.5
Particulate Matter 2.5 - fine particles ≤2.5 micrometers, major health concern
AQI
Air Quality Index - standardized measure of air pollution (0-500 scale)
Source Apportionment
Scientific study to identify and quantify pollution sources
NMT
Non-Motorized Transport - walking, cycling, human-powered modes
IGBC
Indian Green Building Council - certification body for green buildings
GRIHA
Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment - national rating system
RWA
Resident Welfare Association - community organization for governance
BBMP
Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike - Bengaluru corporation (369 wards)
MCGM
Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai - governing 227 wards
Ward
Administrative subdivision for local governance - smallest urban unit
CC BY-NC-SA
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license
ASSURE
IIHS program for 100M sq.ft high-performance buildings by 2030
HPB
High-Performance Buildings - 25-50% more efficient than standard
Embodied Carbon
CO2 from materials & construction (40% of India's building emissions)
Operational Carbon
CO2 from building energy use during occupancy (60% of emissions)
CREDAI
Confederation of Real Estate Developers - 4,000 green projects by 2030
ZEV
Zero-Emissions Vehicle - battery electric, plug-in hybrid, or hydrogen fuel cell vehicles
TROPOMI
Tropospheric Monitoring Instrument - satellite sensor measuring NO2 at ~1km² resolution
NO2
Nitrogen Dioxide - combustion-related pollutant, key marker for vehicle emissions
FAME
Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of EVs - India's EV incentive scheme
MSW
Municipal Solid Waste - household & commercial waste (62-65 MT/year in India)
SWM
Solid Waste Management - collection, processing, disposal of waste
SBM-U
Swachh Bharat Mission Urban - flagship waste program (₹1,41,678 Cr, 2021-2026)
ULB
Urban Local Body - municipal corporation/council responsible for waste management
MRF
Material Recovery Facility - sorting center for recyclables from mixed waste
C&D Waste
Construction & Demolition Waste - 150-500 MT/year, <7% recycled in India
E-waste
Electronic Waste - discarded electronics (1.75 MT/year, 43% formally recycled)
EBWGR
Extended Bulk Waste Generator Responsibility - accountability certificates per SWM Rules 2024
Legacy Waste
Accumulated waste at dumpsites - 250 MT at 2,300+ sites, remediation deadline Oct 2026
TPD
Tonnes Per Day - standard waste measurement (170,000 TPD MSW in India)
Circular Economy
System eliminating waste through reuse, recycling, regeneration - $2T opportunity by 2050
Waste Picker
Informal worker collecting recyclables - 4M+ in India, <20% formalized
Source Segregation
Separating waste at generation point (wet, dry, hazardous) - only 40-60% compliance in India
RDF
Refuse-Derived Fuel - processed waste for energy (6-15% mandatory usage in industries)
Bio-methanation
Anaerobic digestion of organic waste to produce methane - ₹2,460 Cr/year potential
WtE
Waste-to-Energy - incineration plants that generate electricity from waste (₹500+ Cr capital cost)
IWMF
Integrated Waste Management Facility - large-scale processing (500-1,000 TPD capacity)
Sanitary Landfill
Engineered disposal site with liners & leachate treatment - only 645 operational vs 2,452 dumpsites
Tipping Fee
Payment per tonne for waste disposal - creates perverse incentive against waste reduction
Kabadiwala
Informal waste buyer/aggregator - backbone of India's recycling chain
NGT
National Green Tribunal - environmental court, levied ₹79,000 Cr waste penalties
Inclusive Circularity
Hasiru Dala model integrating informal waste workers into circular economy value chain
CGWB
Central Ground Water Board - monitors 23M groundwater structures across India
JJM
Jal Jeevan Mission - program to provide tap water to all rural households by 2024
STP
Sewage Treatment Plant - only 28% of India's sewage is treated, 39% STPs non-compliant
RWH
Rainwater Harvesting - mandated in many states since 2001, rarely functional
NMCG
National Mission for Clean Ganga - ₹30,000 Cr program for Ganga river rejuvenation
BCM
Billion Cubic Meters - water volume measurement (India uses 250 BCM groundwater/year)
LPCD
Litres Per Capita per Day - water supply benchmark (135 lpcd norm, 69 lpcd actual)
Aquifer
Underground water-bearing rock formation - shared commons subject to tragedy of overextraction
MLD
Million Liters per Day - sewage/water measurement (India generates 72,000 MLD sewage)
Treated Water Reuse
Using treated wastewater for non-potable purposes - only 11 of 28 states have policies
AMRUT 2.0
Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation - mandates 20% water reuse
Tanker Mafia
Informal water delivery operators with political connections - Bengaluru has 3,500+ tankers
CETP
Common Effluent Treatment Plant - shared industrial wastewater treatment (all 8 Ganga CETPs non-compliant)
Tertiary Treatment
Advanced sewage treatment for reuse - expensive, blocks industrial uptake
74th CAA
74th Constitutional Amendment Act (1992) - provides for urban local self-governance, devolution of 18 functions to ULBs, ward committees, State Finance Commissions
3Fs
Funds, Functions, Functionaries - three pillars of decentralization that 74th CAA mandates states to devolve to ULBs (largely unfulfilled)
12th Schedule
Constitutional schedule listing 18 functions to be devolved to ULBs - urban planning, water, sanitation, roads, slums, etc.
Parastatal
State-controlled bodies (Development Authorities, Water Corporations) that exercise functions constitutionally meant for ULBs
SFC
State Finance Commission - constitutional body to review ULB finances and recommend fiscal transfers (frequently delayed)
SEC
State Election Commission - body for conducting ULB elections; lacks delimitation power in most states
Ward Committee
Mandated by Article 243S for cities >3 lakh population; supposed to enable citizen participation; mostly non-functional
ASICS
Annual Survey of India's City-Systems - Janaagraha's evaluation of urban laws and governance across 35 states/UTs
MSP
Minimum Support Price - government-guaranteed procurement price for agricultural crops (23 crops, dominated by rice/wheat)
FPO
Farmer Producer Organization - collective of farmers for aggregation, processing, and market access
APMC
Agricultural Produce Market Committee - state-regulated mandis for agricultural trade
PDS
Public Distribution System - government food distribution network for subsidized grains
CAMPA
Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority - fund for compensatory plantations when forests diverted
Lantana
Lantana camara - invasive species covering 40% of tiger reserves, outcompeting native vegetation
Packhouse
Farm-gate facility for sorting, grading, and pre-cooling produce before cold storage/transport
NPK Ratio
Nitrogen-Phosphorus-Potassium ratio in fertilizer application; ideal is 4:2:1, India's actual is 10.9:4.4:1
NBS
Nutrient Based Subsidy - scheme providing fixed subsidy on P&K fertilizers based on nutrient content
GRACE
Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment - NASA satellites measuring groundwater depletion from space
Natural Capital
Stock of natural assets (forests, water, soil, biodiversity) that provide ecosystem services; often excluded from GDP
Ecosystem Services
Benefits nature provides to humans: provisioning (food, water), regulating (climate, floods), supporting (pollination, soil), cultural
TEEB
The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity - global initiative to value nature in economic terms
NCAVES
Natural Capital Accounting and Valuation of Ecosystem Services - UN project piloted in India since 2017
Green GDP
GDP adjusted for environmental costs and natural capital depreciation; would show lower growth for India
PES
Payment for Ecosystem Services - mechanism where beneficiaries pay providers to maintain ecosystem services
EVP
Economic Value of Pollination - contribution of pollinators to crop production; ₹1.12 lakh crore/year in India