Govt considers carrot-and-stick approach to weed out polluting clunkers

To weed out polluting vehicles older than 20 years from Indian roads, the highway ministry is considering a carrot-and-stick approach. It plans to double the incentives to nudge owners to replace them, and if that doesn’t work, order mandatory scrapping.

The ministry of road transport and highways (MoRTH) is examining a proposal to ban vehicles complying with the first-generation Bharat Stage I (BS I) norms even if they possess fitness certificates, two people aware of the matter said on the condition of anonymity.

The first person quoted earlier said that their scrapping would be made mandatory if higher incentives do not encourage owners to replace them with vehicles meeting the latest BS VI specifications.

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For BS II complaint category, largely medium and heavy vehicles, the discussions are on to raise or nearly double the incentive on motor vehicle tax from the present 25% under the government's scrappage policy, according to the second person quoted above. A ban would follow if that doesn’t work.

Queries emailed to MoRTH remained unanswered till press time.

Bharat Stage, or BS emission standards, regulate the level of pollutants emitted by vehicles. BS I regulations, compliant with Euro I norms, were introduced nationwide in 2000, while tougher BS II became mandatory across the country from 2005.

Small fraction impacted

“Of India’s estimated 35-40 crore vehicles, the ban is expected to impact a small fraction—primarily BS I vehicles that have been on the roads since before 2005," said Shreevardhan Sinha, senior partner, regulatory and compliance, Desai & Diwanji. “The proposed ban on BS1 vehicles is a progressive step toward curbing vehicular pollution and enhancing road safety. These vehicles, introduced over two decades ago, are outdated in terms of both emission standards as well as safety technology."

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This move aligns with India’s commitment to reducing carbon emissions and improving air quality, according to Sinha. “The decision would also pave the way for modern, fuel-efficient, and safer vehicles, contributing to cleaner urban environments and more sustainable transportation."

The ministry has already issued a draft notification to double the rebate on one-time motor vehicle tax on new vehicles for buyers who scrap their BS II or older vehicles, including those that came before BS standards. At present, the government offers a discount of 25% in motor vehicle tax on to the owners who replace scrap their old personal vehicles and 15% rebate on the tax for commercial vehicles.

What MVA dictates

Under Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, passenger vehicles older than 20 years and commercial vehicles older than 15 years cannot ply on Indian roads. Vehicles reaching this limit can get a thorough fitness test from authorized centres to extend the life for an additional five years. But the sale and fresh registration of these vehicles are prohibited and scrappage becomes mandatory if vehicles fail the fitness test at recently operationalized automated fitness stations.

Still, BS I-compliant passenger vehicles past the 20-year limit and commercial vehicles older than 15 years continue to operate across the country.

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In Delhi NCR, due to high pollution levels, courts have ordered ban on operation of diesel fuelled vehicles older than 10 years and petrol vehicles older than 15 years on roads.

Currently, all new vehicles sold and registered in India should be compliant with the BS-VI emission standards. The Indian emission standards are based on the European regulations.

The BS 1 standards rolled out nationwide in 2000, followed by BS II, which became nationally applicable from 2005, BS III from 2010 and BS IV from 2017. India directly moved to BS VI specifications nationwide, starting 2020.