- Thursday, April 25, 2024
By: Shubham Ghosh
THE government of Delhi has instructed the city’s vehicle owners to carry valid pollution-under-control (PUC) certificates whenever they are plying on the roads or pay a fine of Rs 10,000 (around £100) and have their driving licenses suspended for a period of three months.
On Sunday (19), a notice issued by Delhi’s transport department said, “The Transport department, Government of NCT of Delhi, in its ongoing efforts to control pollution and improve air quality in Delhi, requests all motor vehicle owners in the city to ply their vehicles only with valid PUC certificate.”
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“All registered vehicle owners are requested to get their vehicles checked from the pollution checking centres authorised by the state Transport department to avoid any penalty/imprisonment/suspension of driving licence,” it added.
More than 900 pollution-checking centres have been set up at petrol pumps and workshops across India’s national capital to help motorists to get their vehicles checked.
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As per the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989, vehicles including BS1, BS2, BS3, BS4 and BS6 are required to carry the PUC. Even vehicles fitted with CNG and LPG kits require to have the certificate, which is renewed for a year for a few diesel vehicles, any BS4 and above petrol vehicle and three months for the rest.
Delhi has been facing a severe air-pollution crisis which causes several deaths every year. Its Aam Aadmi Party government has been taking stringent measures to tackle the problem, including banning fireworks during the upcoming Diwali festival. The crisis becomes severe during the winter which is just a few months away.
Recently, the government also installed a giant smog tower to reduce the impact of pollution though experts were skeptical about its effectiveness.
