STOP! Your old petrol and diesel car might be BANNED from Delhi fuel pumps. All you need to know

Starting today, Tuesday (Jul 1), fuelling up your older vehicle in Delhi just got a lot harder. If your petrol car is over 15 years old, or your diesel car is over 10 years old, prepare to be turned away at the pump. Unfortunately, for many of us, this isn't just a suggestion – it's a strict new rule from the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) to tackle Delhi's pollution. And it's going to affect thousands of drivers. Are you one of them? Here's all you need to know.

Here's how Delhi's old car ban will affect you

No fuel for your old ride: If your vehicle has exceeded its "end-of-life" (15 years for petrol/CNG, 10 years for diesel), you won't be able to buy fuel. To enforce this, as per reports, one traffic police officer would be stationed at each of Delhi's 350 identified petrol pumps - specifically to stop older vehicles from refuelling. At some petrol pumps, officers of the Transport Department would be mobilised. To achieve this, a detailed deployment plan for the officers has been drawn up by the transport department, along with Delhi Police, Traffic Police and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD).

What if you get caught trying to fuel your old car?

The traffic police would have the power to issue a challan (fine) or even impound the End of Life (EoL) vehicles. to help them maintain law and order during the enforcement drive, an additional two police personnel would also be deployed.

How will the police or the petrol pump know my car is old?

On June 17, the Delhi government issued Standard Operating Procedure (SOPs) for forcing the ban on refuelling old (EoL) vehicles. Under this, petrol pumps have to display "No Fuel" signs that read: "Fuel will not be dispensed to End of Life Vehicles — i.e. 15 years old Petrol and CNG and 10-year-old Diesel 01.07.2025."

Furthermore, they would have to maintain logs, manual or digital, of all fuel transactions. In addition, Automated Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras are being set up at petrol pumps. These will instantly flag your vehicle's age and registration details in real time.

While some of us may think that establishing personal relations with petrol pump staff could help us buy fuel in such cases, the petrol pumps would also face penalties for selling to EoL vehicle owners. To be specific, fuel station operators will be penalised under Section 192 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988.

Why is this happening (again)?

Some of you may remember that this isn't a new idea. In 2018, the Supreme Court banned older diesel and petrol vehicles in Delhi. Under the National Green Tribunal (NGT) rules, since 2014, parking vehicles over 15 years old in public places is prohibited. It's just that, now, the authorities are taking a significant step to enforce these rules directly at the point of sale of fuel.