NEW DELHI: The Delhi government is preparing to challenge the ban on overage vehicles operating on city roads or being parked in public spaces. The Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) has directed the transport and environment departments to conduct a detailed review of the existing guidelines and enforcement mechanisms related to such vehicles, officials said.
They added that the city government is working on filing a review petition in the Supreme Court, urging it to rethink its rules on end-of-life vehicles.
A government official said the law, transport and environment departments are studying the policies and legal provisions on overage vehicles. “Once they complete the study and submit the report, the government will examine it and take further decision on filing a petition in court,” Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa said.
A 2018 judgment of the apex court banned diesel vehicles older than 10 years and petrol vehicles older than 15 years in Delhi. A 2014 National Green Tribunal (NGT) order also prohibits the parking of vehicles aged over 15 years in public places.
Earlier this month, Chief Minister Rekha Gupta had said her government will urge the Supreme Court to allow uniform rules on overage vehicles in the capital, in line with those followed across the country.
Sirsa had also written to the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) stating that the fuel ban is not feasible and cannot be implemented due to technological challenges. Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena had also highlighted practical challenges in implementing the fuel ban for overaged vehicles.
In a letter to Delhi CM, he called it “irrational” to imagine that a 10-year-old diesel vehicle has reached its end of life in Delhi while remaining roadworthy and lawful in any other city under the same law.
The L-G had also urged the government to file the review petition in the apex court, apprising it of the range of initiatives taken by the city government in the recent past and the changed circumstances for a reconsideration of its order concerning end-of-life vehicles in relation to Delhi-NCR.
Concerned departments studying legal provisions
Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa said, “Once the concerned officials complete the study and submit the report, the government will examine it and take further decision on filing a petition in court.” A government official said the law, transport and environment departments are studying the legal provisions on overage vehicles