'Third world infrastructure, first world emission norms': Social media users on 'no petrol or diesel for old vehicles' rule in Delhi

Starting July 1, Delhi has slammed the brakes on fuel sales to ageing vehicles. Diesel vehicles over 10 years and petrol ones over 15 can no longer refuel in the capital. This tough crackdown, part of a broader push to slash pollution and clear End-of-Life Vehicles (ELVs) off the roads, is backed by surveillance tech and strict penalties.

Offenders risk fines of ₹10,000 for four-wheelers and ₹5,000 for two-wheelers, plus towing charges, and your vehicle could be impounded or scrapped on the spot.

The rule had netizens scratching their heads, with some users even calling it a stupid rule. Some users advocated for the removal of the Pollution under Control (PUC) certificate as a mandatory requirement for vehicles to run on road. Some others even shared their experiences of being forced to sell perfectly running cars just because of this rule. 

"Single most stupid rule. Scrap a polluting vehicle even if it’s 1 year old; allow a non-polluting vehicle even if it’s 20 years old. Enforce pollution norms strictly. But scraping vehicles just on age of vehicle is a brainless thing to do. Since it’s NGC-dictated, no one wants to challenge this foolishness," strategic affairs analyst Sushant Sareen wrote. 

"As per Delhi govt orders, police today seized overage bikes and handed them over to registered scrappers, who will scrap them and pay the scrap value. And just like that, the bike is gone. It could have been the family's only vehicle, the daily commute to work, essential for a job that required personal conveyance, or even the child's ride to school. But now it's gone, and the owner is forced to urgently arrange funds, buy a new bike, pay tax on it to the very system that took away the first one, or simply cope. Third-world country, third-world infrastructure, first-world emission norms, seventh-world enforcement, and eleventh-world knee-jerk reactions," a user stated. 

A social media user called the rule "senseless" and said that this means the government does not trust the PUC system. 

"I completely agree on it. If PUC is there, whats the point of bringing such senseless 15/10 Year rule? That means they don't trust their PUC system. Then simply discontinue PUC. I wonder who brought this idea. Vehicles not creating pollution under PUC should be allowed to run. I support the idea of Public finning the govt department on bringing such senseless ideas," the user wrote. 

Replying to Sareen's post, political analyst Yashwant Deshmukh said that he was forced to sell his perfectly running Fortuner, which did not even run 1 lakh km in 10 years.

"I was forced to sell my perfectly running Fortuner, which did not even run 1 lakh km in 10 long years. I was so damn frustrated. Taka set bhaji, taka set khaja... This is the dumbest rule possible," Deshmukh wrote on X. 

"Absolutely right sir. My 13 year old Skoda Rapid is fit as per the emission norms, gives 28 kmpl mileage. How do I throw it away?" another user said. 

"Not a decent footpath in the whole country, but will have the rules of Sweden and Norway," a social media user commented. 

"All rules are for the public while no control on the government officials, bureaucracy or convenience of the common man. New rules get formed every day to squeeze the public alone," yet another user wrote.