Old cars, no fuel from April 1: Delhi petrol pumps to scan and stop overage vehicles, impose hefty penalties

overage vehicles, petrol pumps across the city are being equipped with Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras from April 1, as per TOI.

These ANPR cameras will help identify vehicles exceeding the age limits set by the National Green Tribunal (NGT), enabling petrol stations to refuse fuel to such vehicles. A senior official stated that the initiative aims to ensure better compliance with the government's directive by preventing older vehicles from accessing fuel at authorised stations across Delhi.

As per NGT's order, the restriction applies to petrol vehicles over 15 years old and diesel vehicles older than 10 years. Environment Minister Manjinder Sirsa said on Friday, «To reduce vehicular pollution, devices are being installed at fuel stations throughout the city to identify such vehicles, and these cars will be denied fuel.» He further explained that the cameras read and digitalise number plates in real time.

Delhi has nearly 500 fuel stations, and ANPRs are already installed at 80% of them. Sirsa mentioned that when an overage vehicle arrives for refuelling, the system will announce it as a defaulter. This system is connected to a central database that checks for violators based on their registration numbers, retrieving details from the government's Vahan portal.

Delhi's government has deregistered over 59 lakh such vehicles till last September, with two-wheelers making up the largest share. However, many of these vehicles continue to violate NGT's guidelines and operate on the roads. Delhi began a drive to lift overage vehicles in March 2021. Sirsa added, «We are very serious on the issue of vehicular pollution, and this initiative is part of that.»

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