Motorists thronging a pollution checking centre to get the PUC certificate in Delhi.
| Photo Credit: FILE PHOTO
Over four months after the Delhi government announced that Pollution Under Control (PUC) certificates will be made compulsory for people to fill fuel at filling stations, the plan is yet to be implemented.
“How to implement the decision has not been worked out and currently there are no discussions happening on this,” an official source privy to the development said.
With the aim to reduce air pollution, Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai announced on October 1, 2022, that people would not be able to get fuel from filling stations from October 25 without a valid PUC certificate.
The government had, in 2022, considered different options on how to implement the decision, including using QR code scanners, but did not reach a final decision, the source added.
When asked for a comment, no response was issued by the Delhi government at the time of writing.
Industry speak
The general secretary of Delhi Petrol Dealers Association, Rajeev Jain, said there had been only one meeting with the government on this. “The association had asked for security personnel from the government to enforce the decision, as people would not take it lightly if we deny them petrol or diesel and will fight with us. The government said that they will get back to us on the demand, but there was no meeting after that,” he said.
Mr. Jain said that it was difficult to implement the decision, but they are ready to help the government. “We are not the enforcing authority for PUC certificates. The government already has data on who all have the PUC certificates and they should use it to fine the people who are not renewing their certificates every three months,” Mr. Jain said.
Karthik Ganesan, a fellow and director for research coordination at think tank Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), said that it is difficult to implement the Delhi government’s announcement of no fuel without a valid PUC certificate. Instead, he suggested a relook at the efficacy of the PUC test. “The current PUC test does not measure the most relevant criteria pollutants: PM [particulate matter] and NOX [nitrogen oxides]emitted by automobiles,” he said.
PUC test reliability
“I don’t think the decision by the government would have served the purpose, because the reliability of the existing PUC certificates and methods have been questioned. Practically implementing this without a substantial ‘digitalisation’ of the process would be tough,” he added.
Mr. Ganesan said that to implement this decision the government should make a plan to digitise PUC tests. For instance, if a QR code is generated after a PUC test, it would be easy for enforcement agencies to track the antecedents of the test, and weed out centres with poor protocols and malpractices. “Of course, all this must begin with an overhaul of the PUC testing regime itself,” he said.
