The Supreme Court has revised its earlier interim protection granted to end-of-life vehicles in the National Capital Region by permitting coercive action against diesel and petrol vehicles that failed to meet Bharat Stage IV emission norms, even if such vehicles were earlier shielded solely on the basis of age.
The Bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice Vipul Pancholi on Wednesday modified its order dated August 12, 2025, which had restrained authorities from taking coercive steps against diesel vehicles older than 10 years and petrol vehicles older than 15 years.
The order was passed on an application filed by the Delhi Government and the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM), contending that the blanket protection had inadvertently allowed highly polluting vehicles to re-enter public roads, thereby undermining statutory and regulatory efforts to control ambient air pollution.
Additional Solicitor General appearing for the Delhi Government, who highlighted empirical data demonstrating the disproportionate contribution of pre-BS-IV vehicles to particulate matter and nitrogen oxide emissions. It was submitted that emission performance in older vehicles was substantially inferior, with BS-III and earlier models emitting several multiples more pollutants compared to BS-IV and BS-VI compliant vehicles.
The amicus curiae in the air pollution proceedings supported the plea, drawing attention to the fact that BS-IV norms had been introduced nationally in 2010 and that vehicles predating this threshold were technologically incapable of meeting contemporary emission control standards.
The Apex Court took note of affidavits placed on record by the Commission for Air Quality Management indicating that nearly 93 per cent of the vehicular population in Delhi-NCR comprised light motor vehicles, including cars and two-wheelers, and that a significant proportion of these operated on BS-III or older engines.
The data underscored that such vehicles emitted between 2.5 and 31 times more particulate matter than BS-IV compliant models, thereby aggravating public health risks and undermining the right to clean air recognised under Article 21 of the Constitution. The ruling was situated within a broader jurisprudential framework governing vehicular pollution in the region.
In 2015, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) had directed a categorical prohibition on diesel vehicles older than ten years and petrol vehicles older than 15 years from plying in Delhi-NCR, a direction subsequently affirmed by the Supreme Court in 2018. In furtherance of these directions, the Delhi government had notified guidelines in 2024 for the handling and disposal of end-of-life vehicles in public places, including provisions for impounding and scrappage.
Although the Delhi government had earlier announced a fuel supply embargo on end-of-life vehicles with effect from July 1, 2025, the measure had been temporarily suspended following public opposition. It was in this context that the State sought judicial clarification to reconcile public inconvenience with environmental imperatives, leading to the August 12 interim protection and its subsequent refinement by the present order.
The Apex Court noted that the embargo on coercive measures would henceforth apply only to vehicles compliant with Bharat Stage IV norms and above, irrespective of their age. Vehicles operating on BS-III or earlier emission standards were rendered liable to enforcement action, including impounding and removal from public circulation, in accordance with applicable environmental and transport regulations.
It emphasised that environmental governance could not be diluted by indiscriminate interim reliefs and that regulatory action must remain aligned with scientific evidence and statutory objectives. While allowing enforcement against pre-BS-IV vehicles, the top court of the country reiterated that the modified order struck a balance between protecting compliant vehicle owners and enabling authorities to act decisively against disproportionate polluters.
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