Focus on pollution test, not vehicle age

Delhi’s now-withdrawn rule denying fuel to end-of-life vehicles (ELVs) — diesel vehicles older than 10 years and petrol ones older than 15 — reflected an intent to tackle the city’s air pollution problem.

- Bhavreen Kandhari

The rule was rooted in a 2015 National Green Tribunal (NGT) order, which was upheld by the Supreme Court in 2018. However, this age-based approach, applied without considering a vehicle's actual condition or emission levels, raises legal and environmental questions, while placing an undue burden on responsible vehicle owners.

Recently, the Delhi High Court stayed the scrapping of a car seized from private property without notice. The case highlighted a growing concern: citizens losing well-maintained, emission-compliant vehicles due to an arbitrary age threshold.

A Pollution Under Control (PUC) certificate, recognised as a legal indicator of emissions compliance, should carry weight in such decisions. If a vehicle consistently passes PUC tests, forcibly removing it undermines public trust in regulatory systems.

That said, the PUC system itself must be beyond reproach.