Latest news with #PollutionUnderControl
Hindustan Times
18 hours ago
- Automotive
- Hindustan Times
Delhi: End-of-Life vehicles at fuel pumps will get impounded from July 1
Beginning July 1, any End-of-Life (EoL) vehicle – diesel cars other than 10 years, and petrol older than 15 years – that arrives at Delhi's 382 petrol and diesel stations will be denied fuel impounded on the spot and sent directly to a scrapping facility, the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) said on Friday. Delhi has 382 petrol and diesel stations. (HT Archive) The enforcement of the new rule will be carried out by joint teams of the Delhi transport department, Delhi Traffic Police, and municipal bodies, stationed at fuel stations that are equipped with Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras, officials said. In a joint press conference, CAQM, along with the Delhi transport department and traffic police, said a total of 7.78 million vehicles were screened via ANPR cameras between June 1 and 23. Of these, 136,000 were flagged as EoL, and nearly 800,000 were found without valid Pollution Under Control (PUC) certificates. 'This means around 300,000 vehicles are scanned every day, out of which 6,000 are EoL and 35,000 lack a PUC,' said CAQM member (technical) Virinder Sharma. 'As a vehicle enters a fuelling station, the ANPR system captures its number plate and checks the VAHAN database for registration details, fuel type and age. If flagged as EoL, an alert will notify the fuel operator to deny service. Simultaneously, the violation is logged and sent to enforcement teams.' ANPR cameras have now been installed at 498 fuelling stations across the city, including 116 CNG stations. While EoL vehicles will not be penalised at CNG pumps for now, PUC checks will still be conducted. The new policy follows CAQM's April 23 directive, which sought liquidation of all EoLs in NCR in a phased manner – in compliance with previous directions by the Supreme Court and the National Green Tribunal (NGT). It mandates a phased ban on fuelling EoL vehicles across the National Capital Region (NCR) — starting with Delhi from July 1, five high vehicle density NCR districts (Gurugram, Faridabad, Ghaziabad, Gautam Budh Nagar and Sonipat) from November 1, 2025, and the rest of NCR from April 1, 2026. 'The installation of ANPR cameras in the rest of NCR is under progress,' Sharma added. Niharika Rai, secretary-cum-commissioner of the Delhi transport department, said her department was ready to enforce the new rules. 'We've run extensive awareness campaigns and held meetings with stakeholders. Vehicles flagged by the ANPR system will be impounded and towed to scrapping facilities. However, violators can pay a fine and submit an affidavit to retrieve their vehicles,' she said. Rai added all EoL vehicles identified at fuelling stations in June were issued e-challans automatically upon detection. The EoL guidelines for 2024 specify fines of ₹ 10,000 for four-wheelers and ₹ 5,000 for two-wheelers. In addition to these fines, owners must also pay towing and parking charges and submit an undertaking that the vehicle will be removed from Delhi's jurisdiction. According to the VAHAN database, Delhi has approximately 6.2 million EoL vehicles — 4.1 million two-wheelers and 1.8 million four-wheelers. In the NCR districts of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan, there are another 2.75 million, 1.24 million, and 610,000 EoL vehicles respectively. Special commissioner (traffic) Ajay Chaudhary said that dedicated enforcement teams will be deployed at each fuelling station. 'The EoL rule has existed for some time, but stricter enforcement is now essential to improve air quality. We are assessing each fuel station's specific needs — whether it operates 24x7 or is located in a dense fuel station cluster — to deploy staff accordingly,' he said.
The Hindu
20-06-2025
- Automotive
- The Hindu
‘City ready to execute ban on refuelling of overage vehicles'
Decks have been cleared to implement the ban on the 'end of life' or overage vehicles from refuelling in Delhi from July 1, the Commission for Air Quality Management in NCR and Adjoining Areas (CAQM) said on Friday. Addressing mediapersons, Virinder Sharma, a member of the CAQM, said that automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras have been installed at all 520 fuel stations in the national capital to help identify and impound overage vehicles. The National Green Tribunal had in 2015 banned overage vehicles, defined as petrol vehicles older than 15 years and diesel vehicles older than 10 years, in the NCR. For effective implementation of this prohibition, the Centre's pollution watchdog had in April this year ordered that overage vehicles, including those from other States, would not be allowed to refuel in Delhi-NCR. Ban in other NCR cities The ban will take effect from November 1 in Gurugram, Faridabad, Ghaziabad, Gautam Buddha Nagar, and Sonipat. 'The ANPR cameras have been installed in the three ISBTs — Kashmere Gate, Anand Vihar, and Sarai Kale Khan — to ensure that no fuel is supplied to end-of-life buses from other States coming to Delhi,' said Mr. Sharma. How the tech works Explaining the mechanism behind the technology, an official said that as soon as a vehicle enters a fuel station, the ANPR camera scans the vehicle's licence plate number and verifies the registration details, fuel type, and vehicle age with the Central government's VAHAN portal. If the vehicle is overage, the system will flag it, and an automated message will be aired through speakers installed at the fuel station. ₹168-cr. in challans In a statement, the CAQM said that a trial run of the cameras at several fuel stations was conducted in December last year. 'So far, a total of 3.63 crore vehicles have been screened using the technology, of which 4.90 lakh vehicles have been identified as overage. Additionally, 29.52 lakh vehicles have renewed their Pollution Under Control (PUC) certificates, resulting in the generation of challans amounting to ₹168 crore,' stated the Central agency. It added that there are about 62 lakh overage vehicles in Delhi. 'The use of ANPR cameras for detecting overage vehicles at fuel stations represents a significant shift towards technology-driven, real-time enforcement of vehicle emission regulations,' the CAQM added.
NDTV
18-06-2025
- Automotive
- NDTV
AI-Enabled Cameras To Spot Old Vehicles at Delhi Petrol Pumps From July 1
New Delhi: The Delhi government is all set for a crackdown on end-of-life vehicles starting July 1. Under the directions of the CAQM or (Central Air Quality Management), petrol vehicles older than 15 years and diesel vehicles older than 10 years will be denied fuel at petrol pumps. Sources in the transport department said the Delhi government has already completed the installation of Automated Number Plate Recognition cameras (ANPR) at all 500 fuel stations of the city. These AI-enabled cameras will automatically scan number plates and identify vehicles that are under the "end-of-life" category. These cameras will also be able to detect if a vehicle has a valid Pollution Under Control or PUC certificate. Once detected, such vehicles will be denied fuel. To remind the vehicle owners about these restrictions and raise further awareness, the government has also planned to launch a dedicated jingle campaign starting June 20, which will play continuously at all petrol pumps till July 10. Meanwhile, training sessions are also in progress for on-ground staff at petrol pumps to help them understand the operation of ANPR systems and the enforcement protocol to ensure smooth coordination once the rule comes into force. The move is a part of the government's action plan to curb vehicular pollution in the city. Currently vehicular emissions contribute more than 50 per cent of Delhi's air pollution. The CAQM had earlier banned the entry of all transport and commercial goods vehicles not registered in Delhi into the city from November 1. Only vehicles with BS-VI engines, CNG, LNG, and EVs, as well as vehicles transporting essential commodities were exempt.
Hans India
05-06-2025
- Automotive
- Hans India
City Unveils Comprehensive EV Policy to Slash Emissions and Modernize Transport
The city has introduced a comprehensive EV policy to drive its transition toward cleaner transportation. A key target is to convert 80% of government vehicle fleets to clean fuel. In ecologically sensitive areas such as forests and protected zones, only electric vehicles will be permitted. Non-essential, non-electric vehicles will be gradually phased out in a structured manner. To further reduce pollution, Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras will be installed at all city entry points. These smart systems will detect and flag End-of-Life (EoL) vehicles, triggering real-time SMS alerts and public billboard notifications to prevent their entry. ANPR systems will also be deployed at fuel stations to enhance enforcement. A smart traffic management system will be rolled out to address urban congestion—one of the major causes of vehicular pollution. Additionally, Pollution Under Control (PUC) centres will undergo mandatory audits every six months to ensure compliance with emission norms. Responding to public queries, Chief Minister Gupta confirmed that the Odd-Even rule will not be reinstated, calling it a short-term measure. 'We need scalable, long-term solutions—not temporary fixes,' she stated.
Hans India
29-05-2025
- Automotive
- Hans India
RTA database to be integrated with TGICCC for automating challan generation
Hyderabad: With an aim to enhance real-time data accessibility for traffic enforcement, the Road Transport Authority (RTA) database will be integrated with the Telangana Integrated Command and Control Centre (TGICCC) system. This integration will enable the automatic retrieval and display of crucial vehicle-related details, such as Pollution Under Control (PUC) certificate validity, insurance status, and registration information, directly within the existing TGICCC system at the time of challan generation. On Wednesday, a significant coordination meeting was held at the Telangana Integrated Command and Control Centre (TGICCC). It was convened by VB Kamalasan Reddy, Director, TGICCC, with Surendra Mohan, Transport Commissioner. The primary objective of the discussions was to integrate the RTA database with the TGICCC system. This real-time data synchronisation is expected to streamline enforcement workflows, significantly reduce manual verification efforts, and ensure that all challans are issued based on up-to-date and authenticated information from the RTA database. The Commissioner, Transport, assured the deputation of a dedicated team to facilitate the implementation of this proposed automated challan system. Further discussions at the meeting focused on the effective enforcement of key features under the Integrated Traffic Management System (ITMS). These included the Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) System, Public Addressing System (PAS), and Variable Message Display Boards (VMBs). A review of the types and technical specifications, including video analytics capabilities, of the cameras currently utilised by TGICCC was also conducted. The meeting concluded with a decisive action plan – the deputation of a dedicated technical team. This team will be tasked with assessing the feasibility of integrating the RTA system with the existing infrastructure of the TGICCC. Their evaluation will encompass system compatibility, data exchange protocols, and all necessary technical requirements to ensure a seamless and effective integration. The meeting saw the participation of Joint Transport Commissioners, Shiva Lingaiah, and Chandra Shekhar Goud along with other RTA Officials and technology experts.
