The Supreme Court today banned the registration of diesel SUVs and cars above 2000cc in the national capital till March 31, saying the decision will not affect the common man.
The top court also ruled that diesel commercial vehicles registered before 2005 will not be allowed to enter Delhi. Entry of commercial vehicles, which are not Delhi bound, has also been banned, with the court ordering the traffic police to draw up alternate routes - trucks usually take National Highway 1 and National Highway 8 that take them through the capital. A green tax charged for trucks entering the city has also been doubled.
The Supreme Court's decision came in response to a clutch of petitions including one on banning diesel vehicles in some cities in the face of alarming pollution levels in the country.
"Rich people can't go round in SUVs polluting the environment," the court had strongly remarked yesterday. It had also slammed car dealers arguing against a National Green Tribunal order banning registration of diesel cars, saying, "People's life is at stake and you are interested in selling cars."
Last week, the Tribunal had directed that no new diesel vehicles will be registered in Delhi. The tribunal had also said that the central and state governments must stop buying diesel cars in Delhi. These will be interim steps till the next date of hearing on January 6, the green court had said.
Last week, Chief Justice TS Thakur had called the pollution level in the national capital "embarrassing" and had asked for immediate solutions.
Around 23 per cent of the cars registered in Delhi are diesel. Diesel cars can legally emit 7.5 times more particulate matter than the petrol versions and produce more toxic nitrogen dioxide. Diesel emissions are also cancer causing, says the World Health Organization
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