Delhi air pollution: Only electric, CNG, and BS VI-compliant diesel buses to operate between Delhi-NCR from November 1

Centre's Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) has directed that starting from November 1 (Wednesday), only electric, CNG, and BS VI-compliant diesel buses will be allowed to operate between Delhi and the cities and towns in Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan that come within the National Capital Region (NCR).  The Principal Secretaries and Transport Departments of Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Rajasthan have also been asked to target that all buses originating or terminating in NCR to operate only on CNG/Electric Vehicle Mode by June 30, 2026.

As per the advisory, from Wednesday, November 11, all buses originating from the national capital region (NCR) districts in the respective states and plying to Delhi will be either Electric Vehicles or CNG or BS-VI Diesel.

And from June 30, 2028, CAQM has asked to ensure that substantial number of buses originating or terminating in NCR will operate only on Electric Vehicle (EV) Mode. 
 

The directives are mentioned below — 

Delhi air pollution: Directives for Haryana

i) All state government bus services between any city/town in the state of Haryana and Delhi shall be operated only through EV/CNG/ BS-VI Diesel buses with effect from November 1 (Wednesday). This shall also be applicable for bus services being operated by state PSUs and private entities, etc.
 

Delhi air pollution: Directives for Rajasthan

i) All bus services between any NCR city/town in the state of Rajasthan and Delhi, as also to any other city/town in NCR, shall be operated only through EV/CNG/BS-VI Diesel buses with effect from November 1 (Wednesday). This shall also be applicable for bus services being operated by state PSUs and private entities, etc.

ii) All bus services from non-NCR areas of Rajasthan to Delhi shall also be ensured through EV/CNG/BS-VI Diesel buses with effect from January 1, 2023. This shall also be applicable for bus services being operated by state PSUs and private entities, etc.
 

Delhi air pollution: Directives for Uttar Pradesh

i) All bus services between any NCR city/town in the State of Uttar Pradesh and Delhi shall be operated only through EV/CNG/BS-VI Diesel buses with effect from November 1 (Wednesday). This shall also be applicable for bus services being operated by state PSUs and private entities, etc.

ii) All 1433 state government buses operating between non-NCR areas of the state to Delhi and NCR areas of other states shall also be ensured through BS-VI diesel compliant buses with effect from July 1, 2024. This shall also be applicable for bus services being operated by state PSUs and private entities, etc.

Further, with effect from July 1, 2024, all bus services from the any city town in states Haryana, Rajasthan Uttar Pradesh to Delhi/other areas of NCR shall be only with EV/CNG/BSVI Diesel buses.

On Sunday, Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai had demanded that the Centre impose a strict ban on buses operating with poor-quality diesel in the NCR areas of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan. During a surprise inspection at the Kashmere Gate interstate bus terminal, the Delhi minister had found that all buses registered in Haryana, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh were BS III and BS IV vehicles.