NEW DELHI, March 29 - The Supreme Court today banned sale and registration of vehicles with the older BS-III emission norms from April 1, in a blow to auto firms saddled with a stock of over eight lakh such vehicles valued up to an estimated Rs 20,000 crore.
Observing that health of the people is �far, far more important� than the commercial interests of the manufacturers, the apex court observed that automobile firms have declined to take �sufficient pro-active steps� despite being fully aware that they would be required to manufacture only BS-IV compliant vehicles from April 1, 2017.
The court in its five-page order also prohibited registration of vehicles, which do not meet Bharat Stage-IV emission standards, from April 1 except on a proof that such a vehicle was sold on or before March 31.
Green bodies lauded the ban calling it an acknowledgment of the public health crisis and a step in the right direction towards fighting air pollution while the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) dubbed it as �frustrating�. SIAM said the existing law allows sale of BS-III compliant vehicles and that this fact was ignored by the court.
The auto emission norms are emission standards which are adopted to check the air pollutants released from any internal combustion engine equipment, including motor vehicles. � PTI
