The Indian government is working on a new vehicle scrapping policy that focuses on emissions rather than the age of the vehicle. Under this new framework, vehicles will only be scrapped if they fail to meet emission norms, regardless of their age. This means that cars and motorcycles that still comply with the emission standards they were originally designed for can remain on the road, even if they are 15 or 20 years old.
Anurag Jain, Secretary of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH), explained that the government is developing a policy to link the scrapping requirement to a vehicle’s emission levels instead of its age. He noted that many owners have raised concerns about scrapping well-maintained vehicles that still meet emission norms. While there is no specific timeline for the new policy’s launch, it is expected to be notified in the next few years.
Currently, the scrapping policy is seen as unfair by many vehicle owners, as it imposes a financial burden on those with well-maintained older vehicles, given the steep rise in car and two-wheeler prices. Moreover, purchasing new vehicles has a higher environmental impact due to the use of non-renewable resources. The existing policy also discourages those who take good care of their vehicles, promoting a “replace rather than reuse” mindset, which is less sustainable. The Delhi-NCR National Green Tribunal (NGT) ban on diesel vehicles older than 10 years and petrol vehicles older than 15 years is likely to remain in place unless the government issues a notification to override it.