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Protest at Delhi Secretariat over scrapping of old vehicles
The ruling banned petrol and CNG vehicles older than 15 years and diesels older than 10 years from being used in NCR over air pollution concerns
Nearly 50 people from a civil society organisation protested the Delhi transport department’s ongoing crackdown on the “end of legal life” vehicles (ELV) at the Delhi Secretariat’s gate No. 6 on Friday.
The people, gathered under the aegis of Citizens’ Action Group of India (CAGI), demanded a meeting with transport minister Kailash Gahlot to apprise him about the issue.
Sachin Gupta, one of the protesters, said that the forcible scrapping of vehicles must stop. “The vehicles are being scrapped just because they have crossed a certain age. No fitness test and no pollution certificates are being checked which is wrong. The government and the courts must prescribe strict fitness tests for the overage vehicles and the vehicles failing the fitness tests should be scrapped. A blanket policy of scrapping vehicles based on their age is unjust and unscientific,” said Gupta.
HT reported on Friday how the angst of residents whose vehicles were being towed away without permission has garnered support on social media and from others contesting the Supreme Court-affirmed National Green Tribunal order from 2014.
The ruling banned petrol and CNG vehicles older than 15 years and diesels older than 10 years from being used in the National Capital Region (NCR) over air pollution concerns. The order deemed over 5.5 million vehicles in Delhi as ELVs, which were automatically deregistered by the Delhi government.
Experts have pointed out how emission also depends on various other factors like maintenance, fuel, type of usage, etc., and not merely the age of the vehicle.
To be sure, vehicular emissions contribute around 9% of the PM10 load and around 20% of the PM2.5 load in Delhi, according to a 2016 study by IIT, Kanpur.
The transport department data, too, suggested that not many people want to get their vehicles scrapped.
In the crackdown that resumed on May 29, the transport department seized at least 3,000 ELVs, impounding both those in use as well as ones parked at public places, an official aware of the matter said on Friday.
“Arguments between vehicle owners and transport officials have become common. People oppose the drive and also target us. We are just following the orders from our seniors,” said a transport enforcement wing official seeking not to be named.
Another CAGI member said the forceful scrapping of the overage vehicles affects the middle-class more than the rich. “Middle-class people who cannot afford to change their vehicles frequently use older vehicles. Many of them buy second-hand vehicles. It is a conspiracy to push them into the endless cycles of EMIs by forcing them to buy new cars. It will also destroy the second-hand car market,” said the member.
HT reached out to Gahlot who did not respond to queries seeking a comment.
Meanwhile, transport commissioner Ashish Kundra said that no vehicle parked inside private properties has been impounded by the transport department so far. “The enforcement teams are impounding only those overage vehicles which are either plying or parked on the streets or public places,” Kundra said.
Some residents, however, have contested this.
Over 4,000 vehicles have been impounded so far since May 29.
A senior transport department official said the drive will not stop. “The drive is in pursuance of the orders of the Supreme Court, NGT, and CAQM. People can park their old vehicles inside private properties and must not use them. The transport enforcement teams are not impounding vehicles parked on private properties. Only those plying or parked on roads or public spaces are being impounded,” said the official who asked not to be named.
