Times of India , Sunday, February 10, 2008

Correspondent : Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI: The Delhi government has decided to impose an environment fee on the sale of diesel at Re 0.25 paisa per litre and use the garnered funds to promote clean air policies in the city. The Delhi Pollution Control Board has issued directions to tax departments to collect the fee on the diesel, and deposit in Air Ambience Fund which will be created by the Finance department. "The DPCB has also issued directions to the Finance Department to create a separate fund called Air Ambience Fund for depositing the said amount levied as fee on the sale of diesel at the rate of Re.0.25 Paisa per litre in the city," a senior official told reporters. He said the Air Ambience Fund will be utilised for the development and use of clean air technologies, waste management and such other related activities, which promote clean air policies so as to reduce air pollution, especially vehicular pollution in Delhi. "This includes incentives to old vehicle and vehicles running on not so clean fuel, to convert to clean fuel like CNG," the official said adding that the Air Ambience Fund will be supervised by state Environment Secretary J K Dadoo. The exact procedure for filling the challan to deposit the requisite fee has been drafted in consultation with the Department of Trade and Taxes, and has also been issued along with the directions, the official said. More than five million vehicles are registered in the capital, spewing pollution everyday, specially diesel emissions and the government has been taking various steps from time to time to tackle the problem.

SOURCE : Times of India, Sunday, 10 February 2008