Rumour: Govt. to phase out petrol, diesel vehicles in Delhi NCR

The government is yet to finalize the cut-off dates but commercial vehicles could be the first to make the transition.

To combat air pollution, the government of India is reportedly mulling the complete phase out of petrol and diesel vehicles in Delhi NCR.

According to media reports, the central government is said to be having talks with automobile companies and stakeholder ministries to come up with plans for the national capital region, starting with Delhi, followed by Gurgaon, Gautam Buddh Nagar and Ghaziabad.

While the government is yet to finalize the cut-off dates, reports suggest that new cars and 2-wheelers powered by internal combustion engines could be phased out between 2030 and 2035. Some restrictions could be introduced in this financial year itself, though.

Commercial vehicles could be the first to make the transition, starting with new buses running on cleaner fuels by the end of 2025 and 3-wheeler goods carriers around early 2026 to 2027. It is said that commercial taxis could get more time to switch to cleaner fuels.

The report also states that the government might ban all commercial vehicles complying with BS4 standards and lower from entering Delhi sometime this year.

Source: ET