Armoured, specialised vehicles of armed forces exempted from BS-VI emission norms

The government on Friday said it has exempted the armoured and other specialised vehicles of Indian armed and paramilitary forces from the vehicular emission norms BS-VI that will come into force from April 1, 2020.

Issuing a notification, the road transport and highways ministry has also granted exemption to these vehicles from BS-IV compliance.

"The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has issued notification no. GSR 547(E) dated 1st August 2019, exempting the armoured and other specialised vehicles of Indian armed forces and paramilitary forces from the new stringent vehicular emission norms (BS-VI) which are set to take effect from 1st April, 2020," the ministry said in a statement.

It said that the exemption has been granted because these vehicles operate in remote and inhospitable terrains with most challenging operational and environmental conditions.

"Due to security challenges and requirements of specialised operations, the development of suitable engine compliant with the above norms would require considerable time," the statement said.

Further, it is difficult to maintain ideal transportation and storage conditions of fuel in these conditions, it added.

Earlier, the government on May 19, 2017, had exempted motor vehicles used for government purposes relating to the defence of the country from BS-IV norms.

Through another notification on September 13, 2018, the government had exempted special purpose vehicles (armoured and other specialised vehicles) used for operational purposes for maintenance of law and order and internal security from BS-IV norms, for a period up to December 31, 2019.