From November 1, diesel-guzzling trucks and commercial vehicles entering Delhi will have to pay Environment Compensation Charge (ECC) or green tax. Passenger vehicles, ambulances, vehicles carrying an essential commodity that is food stuffs and oil tankers have been exempted from environment tax.
The Delhi Government is in the process of issuing notification, making it effective from the next month.
While large trucks will have to pay Rs1,300 as the charge, smaller commercial vehicles will have to pay Rs700 per entry. Through the Environment Compensation Charge (ECC), the Supreme Court aims to discourage trucks which are only transiting Delhi from entering the city. Trucks are responsible for more than one-third of air pollution in Delhi, according to the Centre for Science and Environment. While figures vary, an estimated 40,000 to 50,000 trucks enter the capital through 127 entry points every day. Almost 13,000 of them just use Delhi as a transit route and are not destined for the capital.
The apex court directed the Delhi Government to issue appropriate notification in this regard as it made clear that these charges would be operative for four months from November 1 till February 29, 2016 on an “experimental basis”.
According to notification, the charge shall be collected by the toll collecting agency /concessionaire of Delhi Municipal Corporation namely SMYR Consortium llP without any deduction and deposited in the account, maintained by the finance department on every Friday. “Accounts of commercial vehicles entering Delhi and liable for ECC will be quite critical for collection of proper and correct/rightful dues to the government avoiding leakage,” it said.
The toll collecting concessionaire will put in place Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) system on their own cost at nine main entry points in the capital by November 30 and all the remaining 118 entry points in the city by January 31, 2016 failing which it shall be treated as in breach of its obligation under the existing contract. The RFID data shall be supplied to the three Municipal bodies and transport department.
“The amount so collected and deposited with finance department shall be used for augmenting public transport and improving roads, particularly for most vulnerable users-cyclist and pedestrians in Delhi. The finance department shall furnish the accounts and receipts of expenditure incurred to the Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) (EPCA) and the Supreme Court each quarter,” the notification said.
Sources in the Government said that transport department will also install CCTV cameras on nine entry points and also conduct surprise visits to oversee collection of ECC and other necessary arrangements. “The transport department along with Concessionaire and the other agencies /traffic police should ensure that in the course of implementing the order of the court, traffic jams and other inconvenience to the public is avoided,” the sources said.
The Supreme Court has asked the Delhi Government to use the money for improving roads, particularly for cyclists and pedestrians. Successive Delhi Governments have been criticised for failing to curb pollution from industry and chronic traffic in the city of 17 million, ranked as having the world’s worst air quality by the World Health Organisation.