Supreme Court allows registration of 111 BS-IV, CNG BS-IV and BS-6 vehicles

The Supreme Court on Friday allowed various applications filed by owners of BS-IV vehicles, CNG BS-IV vehicles and BS-VI vehicles seeking directions to allow them to get their vehicles registered.

The bench of Chief Justice S.A. Bobde, Justices A.S. Bopanna and V. Ramasubramanian heard the batch of petitions relating to CNG BS-IV, Non-CNG BS-IV vehicles and BS-VI vehicles, filed in the case of MC Mehta vs Union of India.

One of the applications filed by the North Delhi Municipal Corporation seeking directions to register 2 numbers of CNG BS-IV Tata Trucks with water tankers and 46 CNG BS-IV Auto Trippers. The Court allowed the application while noting down that “since these vehicles are to be put to use for public utility services, the application is allowed as prayed for, following the orders dated 18.09.2020 passed by this Court.”

The Court has also allowed the application by the East Delhi Municipal Corporation for registration of 20 numbers of Hook Loaders BS-VI Chassis commercial vehicles. The Court said, since these vehicles needed for the transfer of garbage and waste to landfill sites and to help in solid waste management, the application is allowed.

In two of the applications filed by private owners of Maruti Vitara Brezza VDI BS-IV vehicle and Verna Car, the Court sought the assistance of amicus Curiae Senior Advocate A.D.N. Rao to verify whether the application can be considered here or the applicant should be permitted to move to Allahabad High Court. As the Transport Authority of Uttar Pradesh refused the registration.

The Top Court has also allowed the application of the Delhi Fire Services and Delhi Cantonment Board seeking directions to the Delhi Transport Corporation to allow registration for 30 Fire units BS-IV, and CNG BS-IV truck to be used as road boomer by Cantonment Board respectively claimed to have purchased them before March 31, 2020.

The Court has further allowed three applications, two filed by individual persons and one filed by private school owners of Ashok Leyland ALPSV Bus, ISUZU high desk truck and ISUZU Bus, since all of them BS-IV CNG compliant vehicles.

The Court also allowed the two applications filed by Gee Dee Educational Society and All India Kataria Educational Society, seeking registration of 6 SML ISUZU School Buses and 3 SML ISUZU school buses, since all of them are BS-IV CNG compliant.

During the hearing of the matter on Friday, Senior Advocate Sanjiv Sen apprised the Court that 200 similar applications are pending before the Registry.

The Bench has asked him the details of the pending application so that it could hear them

The Court inquired if the environment pollution control authority is still in existence or not. ASG Aishwarya Bhat apprised the Court that EPCA was no longer in operation.

CJI asked, “we want you to tell us which authority where these people can go”.

ASG replied, It needs to be ascertained first if it is for E-Vahans or not. Since the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways may be directed, as they are the authority for E-Vahans. She said there’s no reason for scrutiny of CNG and BS-VI vehicles. Scrutiny is only required for BS-IV vehicles, to see if they were registered before the March 2020 cutoff date. Senior Advocate Sen also submitted that BS-IV CNG vehicles have to be allowed; only BS-IV diesel needs scrutiny.

In its order dated September 18, 2020, the Apex Court had allowed registration of three kinds of vehicles (1) CNG vehicles (2) BS-IV compliant vehicles and (3) BS-VI compliant vehicles for being used for essential public utility. For CNG vehicles the Court had held that there cannot be any valid rejections to the vehicles as the emission from these vehicles is within the limits. The Court had also allowed registration of the BS-VI vehicles while holding that emissions from these vehicles are within norms and those purchased after 01.04.2020, should get registered. Whereas, for BS-IV vehicles which were purchased upto 31.03.2020, the Court had said those must get registered with the E-Vahan Portal before the cut-off date to established the date of purchase. “If the purchase had been made on or before 31.03.2020, and these vehicles are BS-IV compliant, such vehicles Necessary for the municipal Corporation to carry essential public utility services should also be registered. But such cases shall be scrutinized by the environment pollution control authority (EPCA),” said the Court.

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BS-VI emission standards dictate a decrease in sulphur content to as low as 10 parts per million (ppm), five times lesser than BS-IV standards that called for 50 ppm sulphur, the current fuel quality in use.

Read the order here;