Latest news with #VirinderSharma
Time of India
16 hours ago
- Automotive
- Time of India
End of road for end-of-life vehicles from July 1: CAQM
Starting July 1, all end-of-life (EOL) vehicles will be denied fuel in Delhi and will be subject to actions such as deregistration, impounding and scrapping, the air quality watchdog announced on Friday. Around 100 teams of traffic and transport department officials will be deployed to flag down EOL vehicles and all 520 fuel stations in the city will be equipped with technology to identify such vehicles. India currently adheres to Bharat Stage VI , or BS VI, emission norms for vehicular fuels, but there are old cars that still run on BS-II and BS III standards. "The EOL policy started around 2015. The Supreme Court took notice of it in 2018 and Delhi govt began implementing the policy," said Virinder Sharma, member (technical), Commission for Air Quality Management. "However, the implementation halted when the matter was taken to the courts. Now, it's time to act, given the huge number of such vehicles in Delhi and NCR. That's why CAQM issued this directive No. 89 to end this problem." According to CAQM, there are 62 lakh EOL vehicles in Delhi, of which 41 lakh are two-wheelers. A CAQM official said that the fuel stations in the city have been equipped with automatic number plate recognition technology, enabling them to track and record vehicles through the centralised Vahan database. In 2024, 39,273 EOL vehicles were impounded in Delhi. CAQM stated that plans to install similar systems at the 156 entry points into Delhi will follow soon to prevent such vehicles from driving into the city. "Till now, 3.6 crore vehicles have been screened through this system and 4.9 lakh identified as end-of-life. In addition, 29.5 lakh vehicles have been forced to renew their pollution-under-control certificates," revealed Sharma. Sharma added that like Delhi, the rules will also apply to the high-vehicle-density cities of Gurgaon, Faridabad, Ghaziabad, Gautam Budh Nagar and Sonipat from Nov 1. This will be extended to all the NCR districts from April 1, 2026. CAQM pointed out that several studies have highlighted how overaged vehicles contributed significantly to pollution in the NCR. "BS IV vehicles have 4.5 times higher PM emissions than BS VI vehicles," the CAQM official said. As of March 2025, Haryana had 2.7 lakh EOL vehicles, UP 1.3 lakh and Rajasthan 6.2 lakh. When asked about public buses arriving from other states to designated stations in Delhi, such as Kashmere Gate or Anand Vihar ISBTs and getting refuelled at their centralised stations, officials said that a framework of action against them would be formulated soon.
Hindustan Times
19 hours ago
- Automotive
- Hindustan Times
Delhi to enforce fuel ban on ELVs using high-tech cams from July 1
In a major crackdown on polluting vehicles, Delhi will stop selling fuel to end of life vehicles (ELVs) from July 1 and to enforce this, automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras have been installed at all 520 fuel stations across the city, linked directly to the central VAHAN database to screen vehicles in real time, the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) announced on Friday. Virinder Sharma addresses a press conference on Friday on the scanning and checking of registration numbers of vehicles arriving at petrol pumps via the ANPR system. (ANI) 'All pumps are now covered. The trial run has been on since December, and we're ready to go live,' said Virinder Sharma, technical member of CAQM. As a vehicle pulls into a fuel station, the ANPR system scans its number plate and instantly checks it against the central VAHAN database for registration details, fuel type, and age. If the vehicle exceeds the permissible limit—10 years for diesel and 15 years for petrol—it is flagged as an ELV. 'Once identified, an announcement will be made at the station, and the staff will inform the driver that fuel cannot be provided,' Sharma said. The rule will initially apply to Delhi from July 1 and to five high-traffic NCR cities—Gurugram, Faridabad, Ghaziabad, Gautam Budh Nagar, and Sonepat—from November 1. Other NCR cities will follow in phases. ELV bans were first mandated by the National Green Tribunal in 2015 and reinforced by the Supreme Court in 2018, but full-scale enforcement had lagged. 'For such enforcement we realised that technology-driven realtime intervention was needed, which will now be used. The transport department started installing cameras in December 2024 and simultaneously testing of the system has also been done,' Sharma said. During the seven-month trial, 36.3 million vehicles were screened, 490,000 ELVs were flagged, and 44,000 impounded. The same system also caught vehicles with expired pollution certificates—over 2.95 million PUCs were renewed during this period. From July, 100 flying squads will support enforcement. Petrol stations flouting the rules may face action under the Motor Vehicles Act. However, the petrol pump association has written to the transport department objecting to fuel stations being penalised for violations. 'We are committed to cooperating with the roll-out of the new rules. However, we have concerns about the penal provisions linked to implementation issues, which we believe are unfair. We've written to the transport department requesting time for further discussions,' said Nishchal Singhania, president of the Delhi Petrol Dealers Association. The ban applies to all ELVs—Delhi-registered or not. Delhi alone has 6.2 million ELVs, including 4.1 million two-wheelers. Another 4.4 million are registered across NCR cities. 'The aim is to curb toxic emissions before the winter smog season,' Sharma said. He said in terms of emitting particulate matter (PM), BS4 vehicles have been found to be 4.5 times more polluting and BS3 vehicles are 11 times more polluting than BS6 vehicles. Also, BS3 vehicles cause six times more NOX than BS6 vehicles. To widen surveillance, ANPR cameras are also being installed at all 126 entry points to Delhi, said transport officials.
The Hindu
a day ago
- Automotive
- The Hindu
‘City ready to execute ban on refuelling of overage vehicles'
Decks have been cleared to implement the ban on the 'end of life' or overage vehicles from refuelling in Delhi from July 1, the Commission for Air Quality Management in NCR and Adjoining Areas (CAQM) said on Friday. Addressing mediapersons, Virinder Sharma, a member of the CAQM, said that automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras have been installed at all 520 fuel stations in the national capital to help identify and impound overage vehicles. The National Green Tribunal had in 2015 banned overage vehicles, defined as petrol vehicles older than 15 years and diesel vehicles older than 10 years, in the NCR. For effective implementation of this prohibition, the Centre's pollution watchdog had in April this year ordered that overage vehicles, including those from other States, would not be allowed to refuel in Delhi-NCR. Ban in other NCR cities The ban will take effect from November 1 in Gurugram, Faridabad, Ghaziabad, Gautam Buddha Nagar, and Sonipat. 'The ANPR cameras have been installed in the three ISBTs — Kashmere Gate, Anand Vihar, and Sarai Kale Khan — to ensure that no fuel is supplied to end-of-life buses from other States coming to Delhi,' said Mr. Sharma. How the tech works Explaining the mechanism behind the technology, an official said that as soon as a vehicle enters a fuel station, the ANPR camera scans the vehicle's licence plate number and verifies the registration details, fuel type, and vehicle age with the Central government's VAHAN portal. If the vehicle is overage, the system will flag it, and an automated message will be aired through speakers installed at the fuel station. ₹168-cr. in challans In a statement, the CAQM said that a trial run of the cameras at several fuel stations was conducted in December last year. 'So far, a total of 3.63 crore vehicles have been screened using the technology, of which 4.90 lakh vehicles have been identified as overage. Additionally, 29.52 lakh vehicles have renewed their Pollution Under Control (PUC) certificates, resulting in the generation of challans amounting to ₹168 crore,' stated the Central agency. It added that there are about 62 lakh overage vehicles in Delhi. 'The use of ANPR cameras for detecting overage vehicles at fuel stations represents a significant shift towards technology-driven, real-time enforcement of vehicle emission regulations,' the CAQM added.
The Print
a day ago
- Automotive
- The Print
Cameras at Delhi pumps detect 4.9 lakh ‘overaged' vehicles, 25 lakh without PUCC
Following directions from the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM), 500 out of 520 fuel stations in Delhi have installed Automated Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras. Of the total, 4.9 lakh were overage or end-of-life (EOL) vehicles — diesel vehicles older than 10 years and petrol vehicles older than 15 years — which are highly polluting. New Delhi, Jun 20 (PTI) Around 30 lakh out of 3.6 crore vehicles checked through a new system installed at fuel stations in Delhi were found without valid Pollution Under Control Certificates (PUCC), leading to fines worth Rs 168 crore, officials said on Friday. These cameras will help stop the sale of fuel to overage vehicles from July 1 by detecting them. Once identified, the system will alert the command centre and enforcement teams from the traffic and transport departments, who may then take action, including impounding the vehicles. 'The installation of cameras began in December. Since then, 3.6 crore vehicles have been screened. Among them, 4.9 lakh were EOL vehicles, and 25.92 lakh were running without valid PUCCs. This led to fines worth Rs 168 crore,' Virinder Sharma, Member (Technical), CAQM, said. The system will be extended to five high-vehicle-density districts near Delhi – Gurugram, Faridabad, Ghaziabad, Gautam Budh Nagar and Sonipat – starting November 1. Camera installation in these areas will be completed by October 31. CAQM officials made it clear that the rule applies to all EOL vehicles, regardless of where they are registered in India. 'Our directions do not say that only vehicles registered in Delhi will be denied fuel. Vehicles from outside Delhi-NCR also operate here and add to pollution. Some Delhi residents are registering vehicles in other states to avoid rules, and this must be discouraged,' Sharma said. He added that EOL buses from any part of India will also be tracked through this system. Separate guidelines will be issued to limit their movement in Delhi-NCR. To support enforcement, 100 teams made up of traffic and transport officials have been formed. Fuel stations found breaking the rules will face strict action under the law, Sharma said. CAQM stated that Delhi alone has 62 lakh EOL vehicles, including 41 lakh two-wheelers. The total number of EOL vehicles in the entire NCR is around 44 lakh, with most located in the five high-density districts mentioned earlier. The ANPR system is connected to the national VAHAN database, which helps identify overage vehicles and also those without valid pollution certificates. Fuel stations are required to refuse fuel to such vehicles from the dates specified. PTI GVS VN VN This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.
The Print
a day ago
- Automotive
- The Print
From 1 July, no fuel for end-of-life vehicles in Delhi. Cameras to keep watch at pumps
'These vehicles, which are mainly BS-IV (Bharat Stage Emission-IV) and under, cause a significant amount of pollution on Delhi's roads, and our new direction is a step towards clean mobility in Delhi,' Virinder Sharma, CAQM member (technical), said at the press conference. The statutory body said cameras had been installed to ensure the implementation of this a press briefing, the CAQM said that Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras had been installed at all of Delhi's 520 fuel stations to start identifying these end-of-life (EoL) vehicles. New Delhi: The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) Friday said all diesel vehicles older than 10 years and petrol vehicles older than 15 years shall be denied fuel in Delhi's petrol pumps from 1 July. The initial order (Direction 89) to deny fuel to end-of-life polluting vehicles by 1 July was passed by CAQM on 23 April this year. The move had been earlier announced by Delhi Environment Minister Manjinder Sirsa, who said it would come into force from 31 March, but it was pushed to ensure more time to ensure fuel stations were equipped with ANPR cameras. Once these vehicles have been identified, the Delhi Traffic Police and Delhi Transport Department will work together to take 'immediate legal action' and impound the vehicles at the earliest, Sharma further added. The CAQM said the owners of these vehicles could also get a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the Delhi Transport Department, which will allow them to ply the vehicles anywhere but Delhi. However, fuel will not be provided to these vehicles at any fuel station in the National Capital Territory of Delhi. There are 100 enforcement teams made up of officials from the traffic police and transport departments that will manage the implementation. The information from ANPR cameras will be matched with the VAHAN Dashboard, a flagship e-governance application under the Centre's National Transport Project. The data will then be shared with a central command centre managed by the Delhi Traffic Police, which will then take further action. The national capital region (NCR) has some of the poorest air quality in the world, and studies, like one conducted by IIT Kanpur in 2024, have said local vehicle and traffic emissions are the largest contributors to it. While the implementation will start in NCT, from 1 November onwards, it will extend to 5 locations in NCR—Gurugram, Faridabad, Ghaziabad, Gautam Buddh Nagar, and Sonipat. The CAQM also plans to extend it to the entirety of NCR from 1 April 2026. 'We've had meetings with fuel companies to ensure their stations follow these orders strictly. We've also been in talks with the transport department and Delhi Traffic Police, which will handle the action taken against EoL vehicles,' said Sharma. Also Read: Delhi's air was toxic for 56% of the days in last 5 years, AQI no reliable measure—CAG report After numerous directions & a pilot project The order to deny fuel to EoL vehicles from plying on Delhi's roads came after numerous advisories and directions by the National Green Tribunal, and Supreme Court of India, the Union Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change, and the Government of the National Capital of Delhi. 'There have been many attempts to enforce this order, but the implementation was lacking. We're confident that now with our technological interventions like the ANPR cameras, and meeting with fuel companies, and our pilot project, we can implement it well,' said Sharma. The pilot project of ANPR cameras started in December 2024, with around 100 cameras installed in Delhi. According to the CAQM, 3.62 crore vehicles were screened from then to June 2025, and 4.9 lakh end-of-life vehicles were identified. 'We have impounded 44,000 EoL vehicles as of March 2025, as part of the pilot project,' said Sharma. 'It was an attempt to show that our systems are working.' According to data from the VAHAN Dashboard, there are over 61 lakh end-of-life vehicles registered in Delhi, out of which 41 lakh are two-wheelers. Four-wheelers are 18 lakh, and the rest are other passenger and commercial vehicles. 'A BS-IV vehicle emits four times higher PM2.5 particles than a BS-VI vehicle,' he added. Reacting to the announcement, Tutu Dhawan, an automobile expert, said that people must follow the rule if it is implemented. 'Step by step, we need to support the government and policymakers on the road towards being carbon neutral.' Dhawan also talked about vehicle scrapping facilities coming up in Delhi-NCR. 'There's new facilities in Noida and in and around Delhi. But the point isn't even to scrap all cars, it's to remove them from the road.' 'Whether that means taking it to a scrapping yard right away or to a garage or compound to keep it inactive, depends on the users,' he added. (Edited by Sanya Mathur) Also Read: 'Pollution under control' at Rs 50. Inside Delhi's murky system of vehicular emission checks
