A two-week stay on an National Green Tribunal (NGT) order banning petrol vehicles, which are over 15 years old, and diesel vehicles, which are over 10 years old, in Delhi is clearly insufficient to curb air pollution, the central government has said.
The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has now moved the green court, saying it is considering various measures, other than the age cut-off, to control air pollution. However, it needs at least six months to get back to the court with its views and suggestions on the subject.
The ministry, in its plea, said that most countries adopt vehicle fitness tests, including emission checks, as a criterion for curbing pollution rather than the age of the vehicle.
Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Pinky Anand, appearing for the ministry, told the bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar that there are only 7 per cent vehicles that are over 10 years old while the vehicles under 10 years old account for 93 per cent of Delhi's vehicles.
"Give us your views. We will go through it and pass appropriate orders. We are going to examine the matter," the bench said.
Quoting from research papers published by IIT-Delhi, the ASG said that vehicles above 10 years of age contribute only a negligible amount to air pollution. Referring to the article written by four IIT professors on the subject 'Benchmarking Vehicle and Passenger Travel Characteristics in Delhi for On Road Emissions Analysis,' the Centre said that age cannot be considered as a salient factor for contributing to air pollution in Delhi-NCR as there are various other significant factors.
The ministry has said that in Delhi, a large number of people use private vehicles and if they are banned on the basis of their age, the ultimate sufferers would be the people of the Capital who may not be able to replace their vehicles with newer ones. This, the ministry said, will affect their life and livelihood.
The plea, filed through advocates Balendu Shekhar and Rajesh Ranjan, contends that several government departments too carry necessary and essential services in hospitals, municipal corporations and postal departments, among others, through a fleet of vehicles that is more than 10 to 15 years old.
It is relevant to mention that under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1998, no specific age limit is prescribed for vehicles. A vehicle reaches its 'end of life' when it cannot be certified as 'fit' to move on roads, even after repair and maintenance, the plea said.
