Pollution levels should be determined by usage, not age: Manjinder Sirsa ahead of SC hearing on EoL vehicle policy

The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear the Delhi government's plea on July 28 regarding the EoL policy, which was put on hold after a public backlash. The policy, implemented in compliance with the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) guidelines, enforced a blanket ban on diesel vehicles older than 10 years and petrol vehicles older than 15 years in the national capital.

"There are many vehicles that have aged, but because they haven't been used much, their pollution levels are lower. There are so many new vehicles whose age is less but have been used a lot; so we believe that the parameter to determine pollution levels must be the use of the vehicle instead of its age," Sirsa told ANI.

On July 24, a bench led by Chief Justice of India BR Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran agreed to examine whether BS-VI compliant vehicles should have an end-of-life limit of 15 years for petrol vehicles and 10 years for diesel vehicles in the Delhi-NCR region.

The advocate stated that a direction from the Supreme Court is necessary to permit such vehicles to continue operating even after their life term has expired, as these periods were established by the court itself. He said the government can't alter it, given the apex court orders relating to curbing pollution.

In 2015, the National Green Tribunal directed that diesel vehicles older than 10 years and petrol vehicles older than 15 years should no longer be allowed to operate in Delhi NCR to combat pollution. The apex court upheld the NGT direction in 2018.

Recently, the Delhi government implemented 'No fuel for 15-year-old petrol and 10-year-old diesel vehicles' from July 1, 2025, in compliance with the mandate from the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM).

However, within two days of its implementation, the city government, facing public ire, put it on hold, citing 'operational and infrastructural challenges' as the reasons. (ANI)