₹843 cr of pollution cess unspent, 280 days’ data missing: CAG report in Delhi Assembly

A CAG audit revealed 280 days of missing records for Environment Compensation Charge collections in Delhi, resulting in ₹843.12 crore unspent.

Records of Environment Compensation Charge (ECC) collections in Delhi were missing for 280 days, while ₹843.12 crore collected under the charge remained unspent as of March 31, 2025, a Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) performance audit tabled in the Delhi assembly on Monday flagged.

843 crore in pollution cess unspent; 280 days’ data missing, as per the CAG report. (Vipin Kumar/ Hindustan Times)

The ECC is fee levied on commercial vehicles entering Delhi to mitigate air pollution. It was imposed by the Supreme Court in 2015 and is collected by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), with the proceeds subsequently deposited into the Delhi government account. The charge is intended to discourage polluting vehicles from entering the Capital and fund measures to improve public transport and pedestrian infrastructure.

According to the CAG report, titled State Finances for Year 2024-25, the then Delhi government’s transport department’s Pollution Control Division provided data showing that ₹1,624.63 crore was collected as ECC between 2015-16 and 2024-25.

However, the report stated that data did not include collections for two periods – between April 6 and April 26, 2018, covering 21 days, and between December 18, 2020, and September 2, 2021, covering 259 days. The CAG sought an explanation for the missing data, but the report stated that no response was received.

ECC collections were highest in the initial years, rising from ₹144.06 crore in 2015-16 to ₹358.11 crore in 2016-17 and ₹472.63 crore in 2017-18. Collections subsequently declined, falling to ₹95.3 crore in 2023-24 and ₹93.54 crore in 2024-25. The lowest annual collection, ₹39.4 crore, was recorded in 2021-22 during the pandemic period.

Expenditure on the charge remained limited for much of the period. No expenditure was recorded in 2015-16, while ₹0.93 crore was spent in 2016-17 and ₹0.15 crore in 2017-18. Spending rose to ₹271.43 crore in 2018-19 before falling to ₹9 crore in 2019-20. No expenditure was recorded in the following three financial years. A further ₹500 crore was spent in 2023-24.

Overall, five of the 10 years covered by the audit recorded no expenditure from ECC funds. The audit also sought information on whether the Delhi government – then led by the Aam Aadmi Party – had framed a policy for utilisation of the ECC collected, referring to the Supreme Court’s order of April 10, 2018.

The findings raise questions about both the monitoring of ECC collections and the utilisation of the substantial funds accumulated through the charge, which was intended to support measures aimed at improving Delhi’s public transport and road infrastructure.

The audit also flagged deficiencies in the accounting procedure followed by the Delhi government. It said ECC collections were being deposited directly into the public account, whereas, since the charge is a Delhi government receipt, it should first be recognised in the Consolidated Fund of the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi and subsequently transferred to the public account. “Thus, the accounting procedure followed by Delhi government in respect of ECC was found to be deficient,” the report said.