 "No relief for auto firms from SC")
The automobile manufacturers, who had moved Supreme Court seeking modification of the court’s December order banning registration of diesel vehicles in the Capital, did not get any immediate relief. On December 16, the apex court had ordered a temporary ban on registration of diesel vehicles with engine capacity of 2,000 cc and above till March 2016.
The court, meanwhile, took its anti-pollution drive in the Capital ahead by closing three more entry points for heavy commercial vehicles that are passing through Delhi. It also set in motion measures to penalise overloaded commercial vehicles that enter the city. Senior advocates Kapil Sibal, Abhishek Manu Singhvi, and Aryama Sundaram, appearing for the auto manufacturers’ body, contested the premise that diesel vehicles are polluting by nature and argued that it depended on the technology of the vehicle.
Sibal and Singhvi appearing for Mercedes-Benz and Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M), respectively, also argued that the larger vehicles account for just 0.2 per cent pollution and smaller vehicles contribute more. They suggested that the court’s move could prove counter-productive as it would encourage usage of smaller vehicles, which are more polluting.
He went on to ask, “Which is the class that owns SUVs?” To this Sibal said, “Taxi drivers use them.” A lot of BPOs use these for their staff, he added. The judge shot back, “Taxi drivers? Bring one taxi driver who owns an SUV.” While the lawyers sought an early date somewhere in the next week, the court said it would be listed for hearing at an appropriate date. Lawyers later said the matter is expected to be taken up on January 20.
M&M, whose top-selling models such as Scorpio, XUV 500, Xylo and Bolero are hit by the ban, saw its stock price rise about two per cent to Rs 1,270.35 before the hearing. It, however, slipped to Rs 1,238.60 after the court decided to maintain status quo and closed in green at Rs 1,248.05.
Earlier, amicus curiae Harish Salve submitted a status report on the impact of the measures ordered by the court on December 16. The green levy of Rs 1,300 on trucks entering Delhi at two major entry points has resulted in decline of vehicular traffic by some 11,000 trucks.
This, in turn, has resulted in a reduction in pollution levels of around 30-35 per cent, Salve told the court, citing reports by NGO Centre for Science and Environment.
The court then decided to extend the diversion of non-Delhi bound vehicles on more points in Palwal on the NH-2, which would cut down traffic coming into Badarpur border, Ghaziabad on NH-58 and the Mohan Nagar–Shahdara stretch on the SH-57. The court also mentioned NH-10, but Ranjit Kumar, the Solicitor-General said this stretch had been already covered by the earlier move. The measures are likely to ease the congestion and pollution levels by providing alternative routes for the pass through traffic moving from South towards East and from Meerut (East) to South and North. In the earlier order, the apex court had restricted the entry of trucks not bound for Delhi through NH-1 and NH-8.
“No heavy commercial vehicles, except those bound for Delhi, shall be allowed to enter through these routes,” the court said. The court also asked the central government to lend a helping hand to the National Highways Authority of India and the state government to ensure that people using the alternative routes are not put to any inconvenience.
The court has also directed the Environment Pollution Control Authority to convene meetings and to explore the modalities for implementation of further measures such as equipping the entry points with weighbridges to detect and penalise overloaded vehicles entering the city and radio-frequency identification or other such tech-based advanced system for collection of the green levy from truckers.
After the government said, it had received complaints from private owners that they were facing difficulties in getting no-objection certificates (NoC) for sale of older vehicles outside the NCR, the court said there was no bar on Delhi Government from issuing NoC for sale of 10/15-year old vehicles to purchasers outside NCR.
The court refused to get dragged into the commercial dispute that has arisen between the toll collecting agency and the South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC). SDMC alleged that the contractor has been “dishonest” in reporting the fall in traffic and has defaulted on bank guarantee. The court said it was for the civic body to ensure that collection of green levy continues unhindered.
SC ATTACKS CAPITAL POLLUTION 2.0
The court, meanwhile, took its anti-pollution drive in the Capital ahead by closing three more entry points for heavy commercial vehicles that are passing through Delhi. It also set in motion measures to penalise overloaded commercial vehicles that enter the city. Senior advocates Kapil Sibal, Abhishek Manu Singhvi, and Aryama Sundaram, appearing for the auto manufacturers’ body, contested the premise that diesel vehicles are polluting by nature and argued that it depended on the technology of the vehicle.
Sibal and Singhvi appearing for Mercedes-Benz and Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M), respectively, also argued that the larger vehicles account for just 0.2 per cent pollution and smaller vehicles contribute more. They suggested that the court’s move could prove counter-productive as it would encourage usage of smaller vehicles, which are more polluting.
He went on to ask, “Which is the class that owns SUVs?” To this Sibal said, “Taxi drivers use them.” A lot of BPOs use these for their staff, he added. The judge shot back, “Taxi drivers? Bring one taxi driver who owns an SUV.” While the lawyers sought an early date somewhere in the next week, the court said it would be listed for hearing at an appropriate date. Lawyers later said the matter is expected to be taken up on January 20.
M&M, whose top-selling models such as Scorpio, XUV 500, Xylo and Bolero are hit by the ban, saw its stock price rise about two per cent to Rs 1,270.35 before the hearing. It, however, slipped to Rs 1,238.60 after the court decided to maintain status quo and closed in green at Rs 1,248.05.
Earlier, amicus curiae Harish Salve submitted a status report on the impact of the measures ordered by the court on December 16. The green levy of Rs 1,300 on trucks entering Delhi at two major entry points has resulted in decline of vehicular traffic by some 11,000 trucks.
This, in turn, has resulted in a reduction in pollution levels of around 30-35 per cent, Salve told the court, citing reports by NGO Centre for Science and Environment.
The court then decided to extend the diversion of non-Delhi bound vehicles on more points in Palwal on the NH-2, which would cut down traffic coming into Badarpur border, Ghaziabad on NH-58 and the Mohan Nagar–Shahdara stretch on the SH-57. The court also mentioned NH-10, but Ranjit Kumar, the Solicitor-General said this stretch had been already covered by the earlier move. The measures are likely to ease the congestion and pollution levels by providing alternative routes for the pass through traffic moving from South towards East and from Meerut (East) to South and North. In the earlier order, the apex court had restricted the entry of trucks not bound for Delhi through NH-1 and NH-8.
“No heavy commercial vehicles, except those bound for Delhi, shall be allowed to enter through these routes,” the court said. The court also asked the central government to lend a helping hand to the National Highways Authority of India and the state government to ensure that people using the alternative routes are not put to any inconvenience.
The court has also directed the Environment Pollution Control Authority to convene meetings and to explore the modalities for implementation of further measures such as equipping the entry points with weighbridges to detect and penalise overloaded vehicles entering the city and radio-frequency identification or other such tech-based advanced system for collection of the green levy from truckers.
After the government said, it had received complaints from private owners that they were facing difficulties in getting no-objection certificates (NoC) for sale of older vehicles outside the NCR, the court said there was no bar on Delhi Government from issuing NoC for sale of 10/15-year old vehicles to purchasers outside NCR.
The court refused to get dragged into the commercial dispute that has arisen between the toll collecting agency and the South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC). SDMC alleged that the contractor has been “dishonest” in reporting the fall in traffic and has defaulted on bank guarantee. The court said it was for the civic body to ensure that collection of green levy continues unhindered.
SC ATTACKS CAPITAL POLLUTION 2.0
- 11,000 trucks vehicular traffic decline by after December 16 entry ban
- 30-35% reduction in pollution levels seen
- More stretches closed for pass-through heavy vehicles
- EPCA to explore modalities for weighbridges to control overloaded vehicles
- RFID/tech-based system coming for collection of green levy