The Delhi Transport Department has banned all BS3 petrol and BS4 diesel vehicles due to the high pollution levels in the national capital
The Air Quality Index (AQI) stood at 835, which is deemed hazardous, prompting the drastic measure
Apart from emergency service and government vehicles, all other BS3 petrol and BS4 diesel vehicles won’t be allowed to ply on Delhi roads
The restriction places close to 1.5 lakh petrol four-wheelers in the city in the “not to ply” category
On the other hand, about 2.3 lakh diesel vehicles will go off public roads under GRAP Stage 3
Owners will be fined ₹20,000 for flouting the new norms under Section 194(1) of the Motor Vehicle Act 1988
Vehicle owners with cars or two-wheelers that have BS6 certification are free to ply during the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) Stage 3 in Delhi
The restrictions also extend to neighbouring cities including Gurugram, Faridabad, Ghaziabad and Noida in Delhi-NCR
The government had previously implemented the same norms in December 2022 when the city’s AQI levels were alarmingly high