By Pranjal Gupta Tejshree Purandare
New Delhi: The Delhi government on Thursday withdrew a controversial order that would have denied fuel to older vehicles — specifically, petrol cars older than 15 years and diesel vehicles over 10 years, known as ‘end-of-life’ vehicles (ELVs). This means that there even the older cars will get the fuel and no impounding by the officials will take place. In an official letter, Delhi’s Environment Minister, Manjinder Sirsa, said the ban would be hard to enforce due to technical challenges and complex system. “I am writing to you on behalf of the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi to respectfully request the Commission to place on hold the enforcement of Direction No. 89 dated April 23, 2025, which mandates the denial of fuel to End-of-Life (EOL) vehicles in Delhi. This direction was scheduled to begin on 1st of July 2025 and implementation of this direction has revealed certain issues that must be addressed before these directions are fully implemented,” read the official letter to the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM). While addressing a press conference later, Delhi Environment minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa on Thursday said that there was discontent among people due to this move and the government stood with them. The original order, issued by the CAQM and meant to reduce pollution, came into effect on July 1. It would have impacted over 60 lakh vehicles, including cars, bikes, and trucks, in the National Capital Region. Fuel stations were equipped with cameras connected to a database that would identify these old vehicles and block the fuel supply. Many vehicle owners strongly opposed the order. They said their cars still work well and have valid Pollution Under Control (PUC) certificates. They felt it was unfair to ban fuel just because of the vehicle’s age, especially when it meets pollution rules. In response, the government cancelled the fuel ban. Now, it plans to take action only against vehicles that actually pollute, not just those that are old. The government has suggested that the ban should be implemented across the National Capital Region (NCR), he added and slammed the previous AAP regime for fixing “strong norms” for overage vehicles. The Delhi government from July 1, banned fuel for end-of-life vehicles — 10 years or older for diesel vehicles and 15 years or older for petrol vehicles — that are deregistered and not allow to ply on the roads as per the court’s orders. The transport department and traffic police are impounding end-of-life vehicles (ELVs) reaching at the petrol pumps for refuelling after implementation of the ban.