Centre moves NGT for stay on

The Indian Express , Tuesday, April 28, 2015
Correspondent : Aniruddha Ghosal

The Centre has moved the National Green Tribunal (NGT), seeking a stay on its order banning 15-year-old diesel vehicles and 10-year-old petrol vehicles from plying in Delhi and NCR on grounds that such a move would affect public and other services. While the NGT bench said it will go through the plea and pass appropriate orders, it reiterated that the government should “come up with at least one solution” to curb pollution.

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways told the NGT that most countries do not use age of vehicles as the criterion to check suitability of vehicles. They instead look at emission checks. The Centre contended that it needed “six months to suggest measures for addressing pollution concerns”.

Additional Solicitor General Pinky Anand, appearing for the ministry, told the bench that there were only 7 per cent vehicles over 10 years while the number of vehicles under 10 years was 93 per cent.

The Centre’s prime contention was that “any stringent measure… to ban vehicles on the basis of age” will not provide a solution. Anand also quoted a letter written by Dinesh Mohan, Volvo Chair Professor Emeritus to the Ministry of Road Transport. She also referred to another article written by IIT Delhi professors and argued that age can’t be considered the prime factor for air pollution.

However, the NGT observed that while these vehicles might constitute a small number of the total vehicular population, they are responsible for a large percentage of the city’s air pollution.

The plea also mentioned that under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1998, vehicles are not prescribed an age limit and only reach “end-of-life”, “when it cannot be certified as fit to move, even after repair and maintenance”. The plea added that the “global best practice” is to limit the life of the vehicles on the basis of fitness test, “including emissions check”.

The ministry argued before the court that banning old vehicles would ultimately harm the public, who may not be able to replace their vehicles with newer ones since a large number of people in the capital use private vehicles. The NGT then asked the government its views on the nature of incentives to be provided to people who will give up their old vehicles.

 
SOURCE : http://indianexpress.com/article/cities/delhi/centre-moves-ngt-for-stay-on/
 


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