Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, July 3: Faced with public fury, the Delhi government has been forced to put on hold its earlier decision to refuse fuel to the “end of life” cars within two days of its implementation.
The move comes after widespread backlash from residents and criticism from opposition leaders over the fuel ban for end-of-life (EOL) vehicles in the national capital.
The Delhi government had earlier decided that the private vehicles reaching its “end of life” (ELV) period, which was 15 years for petrol cars and 10 years for diesel vehicles, would not be allowed fuel in the pumps to force the people to abandon such vehicles.
The Commission of Air Quality Management order, which came into effect July 1, was meant to curb vehicular pollution in the national capital, where people labour under a blanket of toxic smog during the winter months and suffer through poor air quality for the rest of the year.
Over 62 lakh vehicles including cars, two-wheelers, trucks, and vintage automobiles – had been affected by the CAQM order, which acted based on data stating vehicles are among Delhi’s top polluters. That data claimed that over 50 per cent of local pollution came from vehicles.
Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa told reporters that a fuel ban such as this was difficult to enforce -due to ‘technological challenges and complex systems – ‘and said a system to seize poorly-maintained vehicles, instead of punishing people who take care of their cars and motorcycles, was being worked out.
Mr Sirsa acknowledged the discontent among the people and said the government stood with them. He then announced that old vehicles would not be impounded in the national capital. “Delhi Chief Minister has assured residents that old vehicles will not be impounded arbitrarily. We will not allow old vehicles to be impounded. At the same time, we are committed to controlling pollution in Delhi,” Sirsa added.
He added, “Delhi residents are already facing issues regarding End-of-Life Vehicles. The government has written to the Chairman of CAQM (Commission for Air Quality Management) and stated that it lacks the necessary infrastructure to implement the policy.” The minister said the old vehicle owners were getting fuel from Delhi’s neighbouring cities like Noida, Faridabad, Gurugram, etc, in the absence of any such policy there.
The rollback followed widespread public anger over the order. ‘End of life’ vehicles, or ELVs, were to have been identified by cameras that have been set up across the 498 fuel stations in the national capital region. These cameras are linked to a central database that cross-verifies number plates and alerts the fuel operator about the ELV status. All ELVs were to have been scrapped under the now-rolled back law.
The ‘no fuel’ order triggered furious reactions from people whose cars and/or bikes may be older than the prescribed limit but are still running efficiently and at minimum levels of pollution, and have the Pollution Under Control Certificate, or PUCC, mandated by the government.
One Delhi resident took to X to express frustration that his family’s expensive and well-maintained Mercedes-Benz E280 V6 – a 16-year-old vehicle – had been reduced to ‘vintage scrap’. He claimed also that his car produced less pollution than most modern vehicles. Another man said he had to sell his luxury SUV, a barely-used (because it was parked up during the pandemic) eight-year-old Range Rover that runs on diesel, due to the ‘end of life’ policy.
In a post on X he also pointed out the policy, which the government had hailed as a ‘green policy’ – ‘forces’ people to buy a new car; “… buying a new one comes with 45 per cent GST + cess”. “This isn’t a green policy. It’s a penalty on responsible ownership and common sense.”
These laments were two of many on social media, with people either slamming the ruling BJP for ‘forcing’ people to buy new vehicles or urging the party to think of other measures, such as an emission-based model, to control vehicular pollution in the city.
Delhi was the first in the National Capital Region (NCR) to roll out this EoL ban. Others, including Gurugram, were to follow on November 1.
Mr Sirsa said the government has suggested that the ban should be implemented across the National Capital Region (NCR), and slammed the previous AAP regime for fixing “strong norms” for overage vehicles. Sirsa claimed that the ANPR (Automatic Number Plate Recognition) cameras were not working properly, loudspeakers are malfunctioning, and there is no coordination with vehicle data across Delhi-NCR. He further stated, “There are several technical glitches, and the government has no real-time system in place to notify citizens about their vehicles being marked as EOL.”
In its letter to the CAQM Chairman, the Delhi government acknowledged the infrastructure gaps, citing non-functional ANPR cameras, faulty loudspeakers, and a lack of data integration across regions. Sirsa also mentioned that the government is developing a system to inform vehicle owners in advance if their vehicles fall under the EOL category. “Until proper systems are in place, impounding should not proceed,” Sirsa said, adding that only CAQM can officially decide on whether the policy should be withdrawn or paused.
The Delhi government from July 1, banned fuel for end-of-life vehicles that are deregistered and not allowed to ply on the roads as per the court’s orders. Only seven overage vehicles were impounded by authorities on the second day.
