As Delhi prepares to curb winter pollution by restricting the entry of non-BS VI vehicles from November 1, nearly 3.5 lakh vehicles from Noida and Greater Noida will be completely barred from entering the national capital.
Data from the Noida transport department showed that Noida and Greater Noida had 9.7 lakh registered petrol and 1.3 lakh diesel vehicles as of October 27. Of these, 1,11,867 vehicles are BS IV, and 2,46,993 are end-of-life (ELV) vehicles, including 1,99,549 petrol ELVs (15-year-old) and 47,444 diesel ELVs (10-year-old), which need to be scrapped under the directives of the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM). BS I, II, and III, launched before 2010 and a tiny part of IV (bought between April 2010 and 2011) come under ELVs.
The data further showed that 601 ELVs—488 diesel and 113 petrol vehicles—were deregistered by the Gautam Budh Nagar transport department in August, while the registration certificates of 751 vehicles were cancelled during the same month. The district has 7,08,801 registered BS VI vehicles and 72,727 electric vehicles. Overall, more than 13.5 lakh vehicles of different categories are registered in the district.
Officials from the Noida transport department said they would begin an enforcement drive against these vehicles from November 1.
“We will start an enforcement drive against ELVs in Noida and Ghaziabad,” said Siyaram Verma, Regional Transport Officer (Enforcement).
According to Verma, the fine for driving a non-BS VI vehicle during the enforcement drive is ₹5,000 in UP, while the fine for not having a valid pollution under control (PUC) certificate is ₹10,000. “The department will intensify enforcement drives across both districts—Gautam Budh Nagar and Ghaziabad—and along the Delhi borders,” he said.
NCR districts allow BS-IV, BS-VI vehicles; ELVs under check
Police said that, except for ELVs, all other BS-IV and BS-VI vehicles will be allowed to move in Noida, Greater Noida, and other NCR districts of Uttar Pradesh without any restrictions.
"As of now, we have not received any official communication from Delhi Police to restrict the entry of non-BS-VI vehicles into Delhi from Noida. As per the CAQM guidelines, it is clearly stated that vehicles other than ELVs will be allowed until GRAP 3 or 4 comes into force. We are following these guidelines, and the movement of BS-IV vehicles, other than ELVs, is not being restricted," said Syed Ali Abbas, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Noida Traffic).
He added, "We are currently checking only the movement of ELVs in the district and at the borders."
Delhi vehicle ban leaves NCR commuters worried over daily travel
However, non-BS VI vehicle owners residing in the NCR who commute to Delhi for work have expressed concerns over the complete ban on these vehicles.
“I work in Delhi and own a 2018 BS IV Tata Tiago. The Delhi government's new policy is completely wrong, as it will cause huge problems for me and my colleagues in reaching Delhi. The Delhi government should provide shuttle or transport services from the Noida border for non-BS VI vehicle owners,” said Brajesh Sharma, a resident of Sector 78, Noida.
“Presently, we are clueless about what to do after the complete ban on non-BS VI vehicles. There is no last-mile metro connectivity from my home. The government should at least allow BS IV vehicles carrying four people to enter Delhi. In this situation, we would have the option to carpool, which would also reduce the number of vehicles on the road without causing major problems for vehicle owners who follow the pollution rules,” Sharma added.
Sharma currently plans to park his vehicle near the Noida border and incur additional expenses to book a cab for the remaining distance. He said what if someone in my family suddenly become ill, I had to arrange BSVI vehicle? Or rush for better medical treatment in Delhi. "Noida, Ghaziabad and other NCR districts should also ban non-BS VI vehicles entering from Delhi, as NCR districts were being treated as secondary," he added
Another commuter Pankaj Gupta, a resident of Greater Noida West and work in Delhi said “The restriction will make my daily commute difficult, as public transport is not easily accessible from my residence. Buying a new vehicle just to comply with the rules is not financially feasible for everyone. The government should consider providing some relief to daily commuters or improving public transport connectivity from Noida to Delhi before implementing such restrictions,”
Residents described the measure as forceful, alleging that the government had failed to consider the difficulties faced by office-goers.
The ban on non-BS VI vehicles will remain in effect until January 31.
Effort to curb vehicular emissions
To be sure, the Delhi-NCR region had already introduced a “No PUC, No Petrol” policy on October 1 in order to control pollution. However, the drive was less effective in Gautam Budh Nagar, as automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras were missing at petrol pumps after the Uttar Pradesh Petrol Association approached the Allahabad High Court, citing forced implementation and additional costs for pump owners.
Subsequently, an application called “PUC Status” was provided to petrol pump attendants, but it also appeared to be ineffective, as attendants described the exercise as “humanly impossible” when it came to scanning every vehicle.
The rule was introduced to reduce vehicle emissions, including PM2.5 and carbon monoxide, ahead of the winter pollution season in Delhi-NCR, which has witnessed an Air Quality Index (AQI) of more than 500.