Indian Cities And States That Want To Ban 15 Year Old Cars
The Indian government is actively promoting electric vehicles and other alternate fuel-based mobility. Many cities and states have already announced bans on old cars and SUVs, while others have made fitness tests more stringent for petrol/diesel vehicles. Here are four Indian cities and states which intend to ban vehicles that are 15 years of age or older.
Madhya Pradesh Plans Ban on Old Petrol and Diesel Vehicles
After Delhi, Madhya Pradesh (MP) is also considering a ban on 10 year old diesel and 15 year old petrol vehicles. No official confirmation has been made yet. If implemented, the state will stop selling fuel to old vehicles. Nor will they stand eligible for a fitness certificate.
Recently a high-level meeting was held in the state which discussed the proposal. The reason is the deteriorating air quality in select cities in Madhya Pradesh. Getting rid of 10-year-old diesel and 15-year-old petrol vehicles is hoped to improve the Air Quality Index (AQI).
At present, MP has a lot of old vehicles on its roads. These outdated powertrains contribute a lot to the excessive emissions of the place. The proposed ban will apply to both private and commercial vehicles. It remains to be seen if the ban will be implemented or not.
Mumbai Plans For A Ban Too!
Mumbai is also planning a ban on both petrol and diesel cars. The Maharashtra government has formed a seven-member committee to conduct extensive studies. It will be headed by the retired IAS officer Sudhir Kumar Shrivastava. The final report is expected in three months.
The proposal aims at banning petrol and diesel vehicles in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. It includes the Thane, Raigad, and Palghar districts. If the new policy is implemented, only CNG and electric powertrains will be allowed to operate in the region. It aims to curb the city's air pollution.
Telangana Wants To Ban Old Vehicles Soon
Though it hasn't announced an outright ban on old vehicles, Telangana has implemented more stringent fitness tests for vehicles in the state, failing which will lead to them being scrapped. Such vehicles will lose their registrations and won't stand valid to operate on roads. If these vehicles pass the fitness test, they will be allowed to operate another 3-5 years, but will have to pay the Green Tax.
Interestingly, government vehicles will not be exempted from the norms and will need to be scrapped once they are 15 years old.
Reports say that Telangana has more than 30 lakh vehicles that are 15 years or older in Telangana, 20 lakh of which are known to operate in Greater Hyderabad alone. 17 lakh of these are two wheelers. The government could also offer a 10-15% rebate on motor vehicle tax, when a new vehicle is bought, to promote scrapping.
Kolkata Has Banned Old Cabs Already
The West Bengal Transport department asked private and commercial vehicles operating in metropolis and Howrah to be scrapped, if they are atleast 15 years old. The scrapping process will be undertaken at authorized Registered Vehicle Scrapping Facility (RVSF) centres. This move is again, aimed at reducing air pollution and improving Kolkata's air quality.
In the case of commercial vehicles, the owners will be able to run a new cab with the same permit, if the old vehicle is scrapped properly. The initiative also means a gradual phasing out of Kolkata's iconic Yellow cabs- the Hindustan Ambassadors.