No fitness nod to old diesel vehicles, #Ghaziabad told
The additional transport commissioner (western region) has issued directions to the Ghaziabad regional transport department that only No-Objection Certificates (NOCs) are to be issued to diesel vehicles older than 10 years and petrol vehicles older than 15 years in the areas falling under NCR. The direction means that vehicles that are past this date cannot be issued fitness renewal certificates.
The decision comes after an incident last week where several transporters approached the transport department at Noida and placed before officials two instances where work for checking fitness and issuing fitness renewal certificates was undertaken by Ghaziabad transport department office for two trucks older than 10 years.
The transporters had alleged that the transport department had flouted the ban on fitness renewal for older vehicles and that their vehicles should also be allowed fitness certificates.
The communication issued by the additional transport commissioner (western region), RK Upadhyay, was dated January 5 this year, but was received at the Ghaziabad transport office only on March 8, after the recent goof-up. HT has a copy of the communication.
“Following the directions, there will be no fitness certificate issued to vehicles as specified. They will only be allowed to take NOCs and get their vehicles registered out of NCR areas,” said Mayank Jyoti, regional transport officer (RTO).
In a bid to reduce air pollution, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) had ordered in April last year that diesel vehicles more than 10 years old and petrol vehicles more than 15 years old will not be allowed registration in NCR areas.
In neighbouring Noida, transport department officials said that they were allowing fitness of vehicles only for the purpose of providing NOCs.
“We have implemented the orders last year itself. We are allowing fitness certificate only for vehicles that take the NOC and move out of the region,” said Rachna Yaduvanshi,
additional regional transport officer, Noida.
Meanwhile, in order to further discourage use of diesel vehicles, the RTO has also ordered that the neighbouring Hapur district, which falls under Ghaziabad transport region, register only those autos that run on CNG fuel and no new registration or permits of autos or tempos that run on diesel be allowed.
“Apart from Hapur, the same condition would apply to Khurja centre falling under Bulandshahr district. These areas now have availability of CNG fuel,” Jyoti added.
