NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Wednesday said only vehicles with BS-IV compliant engines and above will be exempted from action if they are found running in Delhi. The top court modified its earlier order banning 10-year-old diesel-run vehicles and 15-year-old petrol-run vehicles from December 18 in view of the massive air pollution in Delhi. A 15-year-old petrol-run vehicle in India and its 10-year-old diesel counterpart are likely have a BS-III (Bharat Stage 3) compliant engine.
Earlier, the Supreme Court, acting on a petition from the Delhi government, had ordered that no strict action would be taken against 10-year-old diesel and 15-year-old petrol vehicles. That left a grey area both for vehicle owners and the implementing agencies.
The apex court’s clarification came following a request from the Central pollution watchdog CAQM (Commission for Air Quality Management). Citing the extreme pollution blanket over Delhi-NCR, the Commission had asked that vehicles with older engines (BSIII) contribute massively to pollution and deserve no exemption.
A bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi modified the August 12 order of the apex court which had placed a blanket bar on coercive measures against diesel vehicles older than 10 years and petrol vehicles older than 15 years.
Allowing the plea of Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati, appearing for the Delhi government, the bench has now said that this protection applies strictly to vehicles compliant with BS-IV standards or higher. This order was part of a slew of directions which was passed while hearing the long-running MC Mehta air pollution case.
It clarified that while its August 12 order restrained authorities from taking action solely on the basis of vehicle age, the protection would apply only to BS-IV-compliant and newer vehicles. Older vehicles running on emission standards below BS-IV, including BS-III and earlier models, may face regulatory action, it said. “The order dated August 12 is modified to the extent that no coercive steps shall be taken against owners of vehicles which are BS-IV and newer, merely on the ground that they are above 10 years old in case of diesel vehicles and 15 years old in case of petrol vehicles,” the bench said.
The ASG urged the court to allow action against older vehicles up to BS-III standards, arguing that such vehicles contribute disproportionately to air pollution. “Older vehicles have very poor emission standards and they are adding to pollution,” Bhati submitted.
The submission was supported by senior advocate Aparajita Singh, who is assisting the bench as an amicus curiae, saying that the BS-IV norms were introduced in 2010, and vehicles manufactured prior to that fall under more polluting categories.
Earlier, a bench headed by the then CJI BR Gavai, on August 12 this year, had granted a relief to owners of diesel vehicles of over 10 years old and petrol vehicles older than 15 years in Delhi-NCR. It ordered authorities not to take coercive measures against them.
Taking a serious note of the severe air pollution levels in Delhi-NCR, the court asked the NHAI and the MCD to consider either temporarily closing or relocating the nine toll plazas of the civic body at the borders of the national capital to ease the usual massive traffic congestion. The top court described the pollution crisis as an “annual feature” and called for pragmatic and practical solutions to tackle the menace. The court refused to interfere with Delhi government’s decision to stop physical classes for students of nursery to Class 5, holding that no further tinkering was required as the winter break was already approaching.
The MCD was specifically directed to take a decision within one week on whether these toll plazas could be shut temporarily to facilitate smoother traffic flow and reduce vehicular emissions.