Centre asks states to comply with SC order on sale, registration of BS-IV vehicles

The Centre on Tuesday asked states to ensure compliance of the Supreme Court's order on registration and sale of BS-IV vehicles.

The apex court had last week allowed the sale of BS-IV vehicles for 10 days, except in Delhi-NCR, after the ongoing countrywide lockdown over the coronavirus pandemic is lifted.

The court, which had earlier fixed the deadline of March 31, 2020 for sale of BS-IV vehicles across the country, had passed the order on a plea by Federation of Automobile Dealers' Association (FADA) seeking extension of time for clearing inventory amid the coronavirus outbreak and economic slowdown.

"The respective Transport Department of the concerned state/UTs would ensure meticulous compliance of the Supreme Court order," the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways said in a letter to states.

A bench of Justices Arun Mishra and Deepak Gupta, which heard the matter on Friday through video-conferencing, made it clear that no BS-IV vehicles will be sold in Delhi-NCR from April 1, 2020.

It had said that only 10 per cent of the unsold inventory of BS-IV vehicles can be permitted to be sold during this 10-day period after the lockdown, which has been enforced since March 24.

Bharat Stage (BS) emission norms are standards instituted by the government to regulate output of air pollutants from motor vehicles. The BS-IV norms have been enforced across the country since April 2017.

India has decided to switch to the world's cleanest petrol and diesel from April 1 as it leapfrogs straight to Euro-VI emission compliant fuels from Euro-IV grades now -- a feat achieved in just three years and not seen in any of the large economies around the globe.

The top court also said BS-IV vehicles which have already been sold but not registered due to the lockdown can be registered after the restrictions are lifted.