Over 54 lakh vehicles ‘deregistered’ in Delhi: All you need to know

According to various orders, ‘overage vehicles’ cannot be plied on the roads of the national capital.

The transport department of Delhi government had, till March 27, ‘deregistered’ more than 54 lakh ‘overage’ vehicles in the national capital, according to official data.

On March 29, the Delhi govt's transport dept began a drive to to send overage vehicles directly for scrapping. (Representative Image)

The vehicles deregistered include autorickshaws, cabs, and 2-wheelers, and some of these were registered way back in 1900 and 1901, the data showed.

On March 29, the transport department began a drive to send overage vehicles directly for scrapping.

“Owners of average vehicles are requested to get a no-objection certificate (NOC) and sell these in a state where these are fit to ply. If found plying or parked on city roads, these will run the risk of being bound down and handed over to the scrapper,” said Ashish Kundra, Transport Commissioner, Delhi.

Why are vehicles being ‘deregistered’?

In 2014, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) passed an order, banning vehicles older than 15 years from being parked in public places. Then, in 2018, the Supreme Court ruled that petrol and diesel vehicles, older than 10 and 15 years, respectively, will not be allowed to operate in the national capital.

What is ‘deregistration’? How to get it done?

For this, the owner must visit the Regional Transport Office (RTO) to find out the due process. Here, the first step is to write a letter to the RTO, requesting deregistration of your car; once the application is accepted, the car will no longer be a legal mode of transport (in other words, it stands deregistered).

The next step is ‘scrapping’ the car.

What is ‘scrapping’?

To be done preferably by a government-authorised scrap dealer, scrapping refers to dismantling the vehicle for the purpose of recycling. Getting it done by a government-authorised dealer is likely to speed up your paperwork at the RTO.

Before scrapping, however, the dealer will remove the car's chassis number plate, and hand it to the owner. The two sides will then negotiate the best price for the vehicle on the basis of its condition and quality of its parts.

People must note that they will be asked to furnish a copy of the registration certificate for scrapping. Also, they must not forget to get a receipt of the scrapping on the dealer's official letterhead. Next, they must return to the RTO.

What happens to the registration number?

Once the original car is deregistered or dismantled, you are free to use its registration number for another automobile; others, too, are free to use it.

I want to keep using my ‘overage’ car…

In such a case, a person has two options: converting the car into an electric vehicle (EV), or re-registering it from a different state (if the Delhi government grants an NOC).

(With PTI inputs)