BS 3 petrol, BS 4 diesel cars can hit Delhi roads from today as govt lifts ban

Commuters in Delhi and surrounding areas can breathe easy. Not that air pollution is completely gone, but the relief of taking their old cars out for work. After nearly a week of ban on BS 3 petrol and BS 4 diesel vehicles to curb air pollution, the government has finally removed the curbs from today. While the ban has been lifted for now, there will be another meeting today to decide whether the curbs should continue or not. The Air Quality Index (AQI) in Delhi has improved over the weekend but is still in the poor category.

Last week, the Delhi government had implemented ban on these vehicles based on stage 3 of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP). A Delhi government official was quoted by news agency PTI saying, “The restrictions were in place till November 13 and they have not been extended yet. The AQI (air quality index) has been stable in the last four days in the city. There is a meeting tomorrow to discuss what needs to be done."

During the course of the restrictions, the Delhi Police issued challans to more than 5,800 vehicle owners for taking out their BS 3 petrol and BS 4 diesel four-wheelers in the past week. The transport department of the Delhi government had issued an order last Monday saying that violators will be prosecuted under the Motor Vehicles Act, and will need to pay fine of up to ₹20,000. Only vehicles exempted from the ban were for emergency services duties or government and election-related work.

Delhi usually is under grip of severe pollution around this time of the year. Crop burning in Punjab, Haryana as well as vehicular pollution lead to AQI in the national capital spike massively just ahead of winter. However, this time, strong winds have helped to clear the air a bit quicker. Over the weekend, Delhi recorded average AQI at 303, which has improved from 346 on Friday. AQI anywhere between 201 and 300 is considered poor, while AQI between 301 and 400 is considered very poor.