Coloured stickers will identify fuel of four-wheelers in Delhi

All cars registered in Delhi from October 2 will get hologram stickers — light blue for petrol and CNG, orange for diesel vehicles.

All new cars registered in the National Capital Territory of (NCT) of Delhi from October 2 will carry hologram-based coloured stickers on their windshields, a move that will help authorities fight pollution by identifying the fuel type used by four-wheelers, transport officials said.

On August 13, the Centre told the Supreme Court that it was planning to introduce hologram-based stickers for private vehicles so that “the use of more polluting vehicles can be restricted in a congested or a polluted zone temporarily or permanently depending on the pollution level”. (AP/Picture for representation)

Those buying petrol and CNG-run vehicles will use light blue stickers. An orange sticker will be placed on diesel vehicles. For electric and hybrid cars, the plan is to issue green stickers but a decision on whether these two types of vehicles will be clubbed in the same category is yet to be taken.

On August 13, the Centre told the Supreme Court in an affidavit that it was planning to introduce hologram-based stickers for private vehicles so that “the use of more polluting vehicles can be restricted in a congested or a polluted zone temporarily or permanently depending on the pollution level”.

After the court directed authorities in Delhi-NCR to start issuing such stickers, the Delhi transport department prepared a plan that would be sent to transport minister Kailash Gahlot this week.

Another transport department official said a meeting had already been held with the only private company that provides high-security registration plates (HSRPs) in Delhi.

“We have asked the company to provide these stickers as well. The cost of each sticker is either going to be ₹10 or ₹12, depending on what the minister decides. For now, we are starting only with new cars being registered in the city and the stickers will be given along with the number plates,” the official said.

Existing four-wheelers will get more time to put these stickers, with the government planning to start an awareness campaign by the end of this month. Stickers for existing four-wheelers will be made available after October 13.

The transport department plans to open 13 centres near motor licensing offices across Delhi for easy access of these stickers. Many cities in China use stickers to identify polluting vehicles on road and penalise the car owners.

“In Shenzhen, the stickers or labels, as they call it, are based on the exhaust emission levels of vehicles. Green labels are for vehicles using gasoline meeting Euro I standard and others using diesel meeting the Euro II standard. Vehicles failing to meet the standards are given a yellow label. The cars with yellow label are not allowed to enter the ring roads that lead to the main city area,” said Anumita Roy Chowdhury, the executive director of research and advocacy at the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE).