Latest news with #AllIndiaTouristPermits
Time of India
03-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
No fine for pvt buses during passengers pick up, drop
Nagpur: In a move that has sparked mixed reactions, Maharashtra transport commissioner Vivek Bhimanwar on Wednesday directed that private buses holding All India Tourist Permits (AITP) will no longer be penalised for halting temporarily to pick up or drop passengers. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The instruction, issued after a July 2 meeting chaired by state transport minister Pratap Sirnaik, follows repeated complaints from operators about being fined by traffic police and RTO officials even during brief halts. The directive cites a central notification — GSR 302(E) dated April 18, 2023 — which exempts AITP buses from parking penalties if they are stationary solely for passenger boarding or alighting. Officials clarified that challans must not be issued in such cases, offering long-sought relief to the private bus lobby. However, the order has raised fresh concerns for Nagpur's traffic management machinery, which is already grappling with rampant congestion caused by over 800 private travel buses operating daily in the city. As per a recent study by the city traffic police under then DCP Archit Chandak and ACP Madhuri Baviskar, these buses — many of which head to or arrive from neighbouring states like Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, and Telangana and even intra-city destinations like Pune, Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar, Mumbai, Yavatmal, Chandrapur, Gadchiroli, etc — are creating daily gridlocks by halting at busy intersections and arterial roads during peak hours. From Baidyanath Chowk and Cotton Market Square to Residency Road in Sadar and Central Avenue, major bottlenecks have become routine, especially in the evenings when passenger movement surges. Key squares like Geetanjali, Indora, Automotive, Bole Petrol Pump square, Ravi Nagar, and Campus square are among the worst hit, with buses regularly blocking lanes while loading or unloading passengers. "This constant obstruction leads to severe traffic snarls and poses a major hazard to commuters," said a senior traffic official. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Manas Chowk, Liberty Chowk, Sneha Nagar, and Jagnade Chowk are also among the hotspots where complaints from frustrated motorists have been pouring in. Last month, Nagpur police commissioner Ravinder Singal proposed a ban on private bus operations in the city citing worsening vehicular chaos. That proposal may lose steam in light of the transport department's latest directive, which, while favouring bus operators, may further strain civic order during busy hours.
Time of India
05-06-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Only BS-VI, CNG, LNG and EV commercial vehicles to be allowed entry into Delhi from Nov 1
New Delhi: In a move aimed at reducing vehicular emissions and improving air quality in the National Capital Region (NCR), the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) has issued multiple directions restricting entry of high-emission vehicles into Delhi. The commission has announced that starting November 1, 2025, all commercial goods vehicles—Light, Medium and Heavy Goods Vehicles—except those running on BS-VI diesel, CNG, LNG or electric power, will be barred from entering Delhi, unless registered in the city. The directive, issued under CAQM's Direction No. 88 dated April 23, 2025, is part of the Commission's continued effort to tackle air pollution from the transport sector, which is a significant contributor to particulate matter emissions throughout the year and more acutely during winter months. To extend its pollution abatement measures to the public transport sector, CAQM has now mandated that all buses entering Delhi under various service categories, including those on All India Tourist Permits, must run on cleaner fuels—BS-VI diesel, CNG or electric power—from November 1, 2026. This condition, stated in Statutory Direction No. 93, will not apply to buses registered in Delhi. Previously, under Direction Nos. 78 and 81, the Commission had stipulated that only BS-VI diesel, CNG, or electric intercity buses would be allowed to ply to Delhi-NCR from other NCR states as well as neighbouring states and Union Territories including Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Madhya Pradesh, and Punjab. To ensure compliance with the new directions, CAQM has instructed the Transport and Traffic Police Departments of the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD) to implement appropriate enforcement mechanisms such as Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) systems and Radio-Frequency Identification (RFID) technology at border checkpoints. The commission has also advised all state governments and UT administrations to ensure wide dissemination of these directions so that only permitted vehicles are routed to Delhi from November 1, 2026 onwards.
Hindustan Times
05-06-2025
- Automotive
- Hindustan Times
Add only CNG, EVs in new cab fleet: CAQM
Only CNG and electric vehicles will be allowed in new fleets of cab aggregators, delivery services, and e-commerce operators in Delhi-NCR starting January 1, 2026, the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) announced on Wednesday. The move is part of a broader crackdown on polluting vehicles to reduce emissions in the region. The new directive bans the addition of new petrol and diesel vehicles into service fleets, covering all two-wheelers, light commercial vehicles (LCVs), and light goods vehicles (LGVs) in the N1 category (weighing up to 3.5 tonnes). Existing vehicles in operation, however, will be allowed to continue. In direction number 94, issued on June 4, the CAQM said vehicular emissions remain one of the primary sources of air pollution in NCR cities. The policy targets areas with heavy vehicle use and intercity travel, including Gurugram, Faridabad, Sonipat, Noida, Greater Noida, and Ghaziabad. It also called on Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan to create region-wide policies for logistics and mobility platforms. In a separate order — direction number 93 — the CAQM also mandated that from November 1, 2026, all buses entering Delhi under various permits, including All India Tourist Permits, must operate on cleaner fuels or electric alternatives. This rule will not apply to buses registered in Delhi. Previously, CAQM directions 78 and 81 had already restricted entry of intercity buses from neighbouring states to those running on BS-VI diesel, CNG, or electric power, reinforcing a clean fuel regime across the capital and its adjoining regions.
Mint
04-06-2025
- Health
- Mint
Only clean-fuel buses, app-based cabs and e-commerce fleets to enter Delhi from 2026
New Delhi: The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) on Wednesday issued new directions that tighten emission norms for a wide range of vehicles entering Delhi, a city that suffers from high levels of air pollution. According to the World Air Quality Report 2024, published in March by IQAir, a Swiss air quality technology company, 13 of the world's top 20 most polluted cities are in India, with Byrnihat in Assam topping the list, followed by Delhi. From 1 November 2026, only buses running on BS-VI diesel, CNG, or electricity will be allowed into Delhi under service regimes such as contract carriage, school or institutional permits and All India Tourist Permits, as per a government notification issued by the ministry of environment, forest and climate change. The mandate will also apply to tourist buses and fleet vehicles operated by app-based cab companies and e-commerce companies. The enforcement for these entities will begin earlier—from 1 January 2026. The directions, however, will not apply to vehicles registered in Delhi. The CAQM said the move is necessary as the transport sector continues to be a major source of air pollution in the national capital and across NCR, with the problem becoming worse during winter months. Buses and commercial fleets running on older, more polluting fuels are among the biggest contributors to toxic emissions, it said. The new rule builds on earlier orders that had already restricted fuel-use in intercity buses coming to Delhi-NCR from Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Jammu & Kashmir and Madhya Pradesh. These older directions will continue to remain in force, as per the ministry. In a separate but related measure, CAQM has made it mandatory for ride-hailing, logistics and e-commerce fleets operating in Delhi-NCR to transition to cleaner fuel options starting 1 January 2026. From that date, only electric or CNG three-wheelers will be allowed to be added to their fleets. No new diesel or petrol-run vehicles—two-wheelers, or four-wheeler light commercial vehicles (up to 3.5 tonnes)—will be permitted for induction, it said. However, the existing internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles already in service may continue to operate for the time being. Delhi had already taken the lead on this front by notifying the Motor Vehicle Aggregator and Delivery Service Provider Scheme in 2023. CAQM has now urged other NCR states—Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan—to frame similar policies, especially targeting high vehicle-density cities such as Gurugram, Faridabad, Sonipat, Noida, Greater Noida and Ghaziabad, where e-commerce and aggregator fleets are a major part of the daily traffic. A separate ban on the entry of commercial goods vehicles—light, medium or heavy—that do not meet BS-VI, CNG, LNG, or electric norms is already set to kick in from 1 November 2025. These rules too exempt vehicles registered in Delhi. To ensure effective enforcement, Delhi's Transport and Traffic Police departments have been instructed to use technologies like automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) and RFID systems at border points. State governments in NCR have also been told to develop online monitoring platforms and carry out public awareness campaigns to ensure smooth compliance with the new rules. Air pollution in Delhi has worsened, with the annual average PM2.5 concentration rising from 102.4 micrograms per cubic meter in 2023 to 108.3 micrograms per cubic meter in 2024.
