If you haven’t been living under a rock, you must know about the rule that bans 10-year old diesel and 15-year old petrol vehicles from plying on the streets of Delhi-NCR. This came after a 2015 NGT order, which was given a green light by the Supreme Court in 2018.
In early July, this order saw stricter enforcement with such vehicles being denied fuel at filing stations across the Capital, with many vehicles being impounded by the authorities for scrapping.
Owners of such vehicles strongly condemned the rule, accusing it to be unjust and irrational, with the age of the vehicles being the sole parameter of deciding their end of life, rather than their mileage and actual pollution levels.
With the Government of Delhi writing to the Commission for Air Quality Management to put the fuel ban on hold, the same was done just a couple of days after the ban was put into effect.
India’s top court has now directed to not take any action against the owners of such vehicles, till it rehears the matter in four weeks.
While this provides temporary relief to owners, the future still remains uncertain until there is a solid directive from the Court.