 "No fuel for old vehicles in Delhi from today: Here is what to know")
From today, July 1, end-of-life diesel and petrol vehicles will no longer be permitted to refuel at any fuel station in Delhi, regardless of their registration state. The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) has directed fuel stations citywide to refuse service to such end-of-life vehicles starting today.
Delhi government to implement measure
A deployment plan has been created to implement the measure involving personnel from the Transport Department, Delhi Police, Traffic Police and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD). Delhi Police will be positioned at fuel stations numbered 1 to 100, while the Transport Department will oversee operations across stations numbered 101 to 159, deploying 59 dedicated teams.
Rules will be applied on which vehicles?
All end-of-life vehicles -- including diesel ones older than 10 years and petrol ones older than 15 years -- are subject to the refuelling ban in Delhi, regardless of where they are registered.
How will this rule be enforced?
Earlier, the CAQM had issued a directive mandating that fuel stations cease supplying fuel to end-of-life vehicles from July 1. To enforce this, each of the 350 designated fuel stations will have one traffic police officer stationed to oversee compliance. Two additional officers will be present at each site to maintain order and support enforcement efforts.
A senior police officer told news agency PTI that their traffic personnel would ensure the vehicle was impounded and a challan issued to the owner of the end-of-life vehicles.
Fuel station operators have also been instructed to train their staff in the CAQM’s procedures for identifying and denying fuel to non-compliant vehicles.
Automated detection of number plates to be enforced
The Delhi Transport Infrastructure Development Corporation (DTIDC) has been assigned the responsibility of ensuring that the Automated Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras at fuel stations operate effectively. These systems will read number plates and verify vehicle age against the Vahan database. Alerts will be sent to a central control room and enforcement teams when vehicles are found to be too old.
What will happen if this rule is implemented?
Legal action will be taken immediately against end-of-life vehicles identified through the system. This includes vehicle impounding and disposal. Fuel stations found in breach of the regulation will be reported weekly to the CAQM and the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas for further measures.
Fuel station operators who fail to comply may face penalties under Section 192 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988.
Why is this rule being implemented?
Strict enforcement begins from Tuesday following CAQM directives aimed at tackling vehicular emissions. A 2018 Supreme Court judgment prohibits the use of diesel vehicles more than 10 years old and petrol vehicles over 15 years old in Delhi. Additionally, a 2014 NGT directive bans parking vehicles older than 15 years in public areas. This move will affect around 6.2 million vehicles in Delhi alone, of which 4.1 million are two-wheelers.
Rule to be extended to satellite cities
The fuel restriction will be expanded to five neighbouring high-vehicle-density districts -- Gurugram, Faridabad, Ghaziabad, Gautam Budh Nagar (Noida), and Sonipat -- from November 1 onwards. (With inputs from agencies)