“We are conscious of the fact that these three vehicles are special purpose vehicles which are not normally available and these vehicles have run very less in the last ten years and are needed for the specific purpose of security of the Prime Minister but in view of the order of the Hon’ble Supreme Court dated 29.10.2018… the prayer made… cannot be granted” and it “is accordingly rejected,” the bench said.

The SPG had approached the NGT with a prayer to “direct Transport Department, NCT of Delhi/Registering Authority to allow extension of registration period of Specialized Armoured Vehicles (03 Nos.) by five years i.e. till 23/12/2029” saying “these vehicles are essential and integral part of Special Protection Group technical logistics”.

Manufactured in 2013 and registered in December 2014, the three Renault MD-5 specialised armoured vehicles, according to the order, have in the last 9 years covered only about 6,000 km, 9,500 km and 15,000 km respectively “as they are being used only for specific tactical purpose”.

Although registered for a period of 15 years up to December 2029, these vehicles will be deregistered in December 2024 on completion of 10 years – in line with the Supreme Court’s 2018 order.

In May 2023, the SPG asked the Transport department to extend the registration of the three vehicles by another five years. “Applicant had approached the Special Commissioner (Ops), Govt. of NCT of Delhi, Transport Department vide Letter dated 19.05.2023 for extension of registration of these Special Armoured Vehicles for 05 more years beyond the period of 10 years. The said prayer has been refused by communication dated 06.06.2023 by Registering Authority, NCT of Delhi stating that prayer cannot be acceded to in the light of orders passed by the NGT and Hon’ble Supreme Court,” the order noted.

The SPG told the NGT that these vehicles were “very special in nature/design and in technical/tactical specifications and they are not easily available in the market to meet the requirements”.

In its submissions and arguments, the SPG had relied on a clutch of notifications issued by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways to seek extension of registration of the vehicles. These notifications provided relaxations on extending registration of old vehicles in special cases, such as ones used for security purposes.

However, the NGT bench, in its order, noted that the government notifications were general in nature whereas the Supreme Court order on diesel vehicles was specifically for Delhi NCR. The NGT order also noted that these SPG vehicles, being older, were only compliant with Bharat Stage III, the older emission norms for motor vehicles.

Prior to the Supreme Court’s 2018 order, the NGT had itself passed an order in April 2015, banning all diesel vehicles older than 10 years from plying on the roads of Delhi NCR. It had ordered the governments of Delhi, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh not to register any diesel vehicle older than 10 years. The NGT and the Supreme Court had passed these orders as measures to improve the air quality in Delhi NCR.