Mixed reaction to Delhi govt’s ‘no fuel’ rule for vehicles older than 15 years- The Week

Fuel pumps in Delhi will not provide petrol and diesel to vehicles older than 15 and 10 years, respectively, from April 1, the government said on Saturday.

Delhi Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa said fuel pumps in the national capital would be equipped with devices to identify overage vehicles and restrict fuel supply to them.

The move is aimed at curbing vehicular emissions and putting a check on air pollution in the city.

“We are setting up gadgets at our petrol pumps that will identify vehicles older than 15 years. They will not be provided fuel,” the minister said, adding that the decision would be conveyed to the Union Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas.

A senior government official told news agency PTI that there are around 55 lakh overage vehicles in the national capital. Around 66 per cent of them are two-wheelers and 54 per cent four-wheelers.

“These cameras currently detect vehicles which do not have PUC certificate and the fuel pump staff deny fuel to such vehicles. We can also use these AI-enabled cameras to detect the age of particular vehicles. For this, we need to upgrade our system,” he said.

In a 2018 order, the Supreme Court had banned diesel vehicles older than 10 years and petrol vehicles older than 15 years in Delhi.

The government’s latest decision, however, has sparked mixed reactions with many questioning its fairness.

“This government decision is wrong. If the condition of the vehicle is good, then its validity should be increased. Only those vehicles should be stopped that are spreading pollution,” a resident told news agency ANI.

Another resident noted that though vehicles were responsible for the pollution in Delhi to a certain extent, most of the pollution was from dust and factories.

Bhavreen Kandhari, an environmentalist, said there is no scientific study that proves only vehicles older than 15 years are responsible for air pollution.

“The government should focus, instead, on controlling emissions and addressing major sources of pollution such as industries, construction activities and fossil fuel plants located in the middle of the city,” she told PTI.

Nischal Singhania, the president of the Delhi Petrol Dealers Association, welcomed the move and noted that vehicles older than 15 years are already banned in Delhi by the Supreme Court.

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