No PUC, No Fuel: Delhi govt to make new policy mandatory on petrol pumps

Delhi government is planning on making Pollution Under Control (PUC) certificates mandatory for refuelling on petrol pumps.

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In an attempt to improve Delhi's air quality, the Delhi government will soon make a Pollution Under Control (PUC) certificate necessary for filling fuel at pumps to ensure that polluting vehicles do not ply in the national capital.

This is not the first time the Delhi govt has announced such a measure. Back in October 2021, govt made a similar announcement, and a campaign was done to educate travellers.

Environment Minister Gopal Rai said: "This is a very ambitious policy brought forth by the Arvind Kejriwal government. North India, including Delhi, faces grave air pollution, particularly in winter; with this policy in place, vehicles will be mandated to have their PUC certificate with them at the fuelling station. Thus, pollution levels of every single vehicle in the state will be kept in check from time to time."

"The policy will effectively help us ensure that polluting vehicles do not ply in Delhi and residents can enjoy cleaner air. The policy is being placed for public opinion and review before being notified," he added.

The pollution under control (PUC) certificate is an essential means for vehicles issued through registered PUC centres to control vehicular tailpipe emissions. Delhi has around 966 such centres spread over ten zones. They are instrumental in monitoring vehicular pollution and certifying the fitness of vehicles as per emission norms.

Pollution Level Test Inspectors also do random checks to ensure the PUC centres are issuing that accurate certificates. Pollution Level Test Inspectors also do random checks.

As per department experience, PUCC enforcement is highly effective when conducted at fuel stations; thus, it has been proposed to make PUC certification mandatory for refuelling of vehicles at Petrol Pumps in Delhi, in view of the importance of non-polluting vehicles on the road amidst the poor air quality levels of Delhi.

Along with the approval of the policy, the government is also working on setting up technology-based methods for effective implementation of this policy to ensure that vehicle owners and petrol pump owners don`t face any inconvenience, and there are no long queues of checking PUC certificates.

While the exact mechanisms are being worked out, these methods can also include technologies like RFID, the Delhi government said in a release.

With inputs from IANS