SC lifts ban on sale of diesel cars in Delhi

•  The Supreme Court lifted an eight-month-old ban on the registration of large vehicles fuelled by diesel in the national capital region (NCR) , making it conditional on manufacturers paying a levy for polluting the city’s air.
• Automobile makers would have to pay a levy equal to 1% of the ex-showroom price of diesel vehicles with an engine capacity above 2000cc.
• The Supreme Court, on 16 December 2015, banned the registration of luxury automobiles and sport utility vehicles with an engine capacity in excess of 2000cc in NCR, responding to concerns over increasing air pollution in the national capital, blamed on emissions by diesel vehicles.
• Delhi was ranked the world’s most polluted city in 2014 by the World Health Organization (WHO). This year, WHO ranked the quality of Delhi’s air the 11th most foul.

Analysis:

• Ban on Diesel vehicles was justified because diesel vehicle exhausts have also been identified as carcinogens by the WHO . Environmentalists believe that these diesel-operated vehicles contribute 60 percent of the main air pollutants spewed because most of them do not adhere to the vehicular emission standards. Some of them are 10 years old, some 20. A majority of them run on a mixture of kerosene and diesel to save money.
• However, on the other side BS IV diesel vehicles are very clean and it would be wrong to label them as unclean. Big companies like Maruti Suzuki, Honda and Hyundai invested in diesel engine capacities in the past four years, when the demand for diesel cars was high.
• Diesel offers 25-30 per cent higher fuel efficiency compared to petrol. If you stop sale of diesel vehicles, the country's energy consumption will go up.
• So, this is considered as good step because instead of a drastic ban, the city can adopt a time-bound phase-out plan for very old vehicles. As it is done in other parts of the world, the older vehicles can be colour coded for easy recognition. Either registered within or outside Delhi, they need to be labeled. this colour code can reflect the technology vintage like pre-Euro I and Euro I and II and these can be barred in phases.
• Simultaneously, introduce annual registration tax on all vehicles and increase the tax rate according to age. The revenue from this tax can be taken to a public transport fund. A onetime grant can also be made for replacement of these vehicles only with vehicles meeting Euro V emissions standards and above.

By: Vishal