Following the order of the National Green Tribunal (NGT), the Delhi Transport Department recently issued an order stating that diesel vehicles older than 10 years will automatically be deregistered from January 1, 2022
With owners of ‘overage’ diesel or petrol vehicles panicking over the possibility of their cars being deregistered or impounded, Delhi government officials have said they can avail benefits of the scrappage policy or obtain a no-objection certificate and sell such vehicles outside the capital. Plans are also afoot so people can convert old vehicles to electric, though that will likely take time.
Following the order of the National Green Tribunal (NGT), the Delhi Transport Department recently issued an order stating that diesel vehicles older than 10 years will automatically be deregistered from January 1, 2022.
The department also said that if any ‘end of life (ELV)’ vehicle is found parked in a public space or plying on the road, it will be impounded by the police or transport enforcement unit and sent to the scrapyard.
The department has so far deregistered about 1 lakh diesel vehicles. The city currently has about 38 lakh ‘overage’ vehicles.
A senior government official said, “The Delhi government has authorised eight scrapyards in NCR and all these authorised vendors have offices in Delhi. If any vehicle owner wants to get their car scrapped, they can call a vendor and someone will come and pick the vehicle from your doorstep. These yards are also equipped with CCTVs and the owners can see or get a video of their vehicle being scrapped to make sure there is no misuse.”
The official said people must not go to unauthorised scrapyards as their vehicle “can be used for criminal activities”.
The official said vehicle owners who opt for this and produce a ‘scrapping certificate’ will get road tax exemption up to 25% rebate on a new personal vehicle. “The owners will also be paid for parts of the vehicle that are in a good condition, as well for iron, which is currently Rs 26 per kg,” said the official.
People whose vehicles are about to reach the age limit can get a no-objection certificate to sell in states where diesel cars older than 10 years and petrol cars older than 15 years can ply. These include Rajasthan, Bihar, Maharashtra, UP, West Bengal, etc.
“The procedure is available on the website of the transport department. Further, if a person wants to convert an old vehicle to electric, retrofitting with empanelled kits will be done through agencies approved by the transport department. There are about 10 agencies currently working with the department on this, but it will take time,” said Transport Commissioner Ashish Kundra.
“This is a very good policy for controlling the increasing level of air pollution. Police and government will take action but RWAs and housing societies should also take proactive measures and create awareness on the policy,” said Anil Chhikara, a transport expert.
Sewa Ram, a professor at
the School of Planning and Architecture (SPA), said: “This will help the city breathe and also reduce accidents. Apart from deregistering these vehicles, the government or NGT should also see that they are also not re-registered and operated in states with a large number of vehicles. Otherwise, there will be no point.”
