New Delhi: With a large number of vehicles that have completed their lifespan, including those owned by govt bodies, continuing to ply on city roads, the transport department has asked all Delhi govt departments to identify such vehicles and scrap them at the earliest.
Officials said a similar communication had also been sent to central govt and its related agencies. Sources said the number of such vehicles — cars, jeeps and commercial vehicles — would run into thousands.
The transport department has already come out with a new set of guidelines to prevent the movement of overaged or end-of-life vehicles — petrol-run vehicles above 15 years of age and diesel vehicles above 10 years — which are considered polluting and have been barred from National Capital Region (NCR) by Supreme Court.
“Not only individuals, even govt agencies are culprits of running overaged vehicles. We have requested central govt agencies to scrap such vehicles through the govt scrapper at the earliest,” said an official.
“We have also asked all Delhi govt departments, linked agencies and autonomous bodies to identify such vehicles and initiate the process of scrapping them. Till the time these vehicles are scrapped, we have asked the departments to ensure they are not operated,” said an official.
Sources said the parking areas of most govt buildings had a number of such vehicles occupying the space. The parking lot opposite Delhi Secretariat, Vikas Bhawan I and II and various other offices spread across the city have such cars and jeeps.
According to the ‘Guidelines for handling end of life vehicles in public places of Delhi 2024’, which came into effect in Feb, an overaged vehicle registered in the capital impounded by an enforcement agency can be released only on two conditions — either the owner agrees to get the no-objection certificate from the transport department and get it registered in another state outside the boundary of NCR or he or she keeps it parked in a private space.
Under both conditions, the vehicle will be released just once on the payment of a penalty — INR 10,000 for a car and INR 5,000 for a two-wheeler — and the undertaking from the owners. The application will have to be made within three weeks of the vehicle being impounded. If the owner decides to keep the vehicle at a designated private parking, the vehicle will have to be carried by a towing vehicle.
If the vehicle is found on the road or in a public place again, it will be scrapped by the authorities. There are no provisions now under which impounded vehicles can be released again to owners.
In case the vehicle is registered in a different state, the owner will have to explain the reason why it was brought to the capital to get it released. If the violation is repeated, the vehicle will be sent to the scrapyard.
