Kerala Motor Vehicle department to move Supreme Court on NGT vehicle ban order

Thiruvananthapuram: The Motor Vehicle department (MVD) will move the Supreme Court against the National Green Tribunal’s (NGT) verdict banning diesel vehicles over 2000CC that are on road for over 10 years from operating in the state.

Transport minister A.K. Saseendran convened a meeting of officials from various departments here on Thursday to discuss various possibilities in the aftermath of the green tribunal verdict. Mr Sassendran told this newspaper that the final decision on whether to submit an appeal will be taken after studying the pros and cons of the issue.

All the vehicles were given registration after the owners paid a tax for 15 years.
In such cases, there are chances for legal battles if they are forced to take out their vehicles from roads, Mr Saseendran said. Another issue was relating to public transport vehicles. At present no company manufactured petrol vehicles for the public transport system.

Though there are some alternatives for diesel in public transport vehicles like CNG, there was a dearth of trained professionals in the state who have the know-how to support this change, Mr Saseendran said. Even the green tribunal had asked the governments to think of alternatives for diesel in public transport vehicles.

However, the state government was not in a position to ensure this changeover in such a short span of time. Officials have been asked to submit a note expressing their suggestion in wake of the green tribunal verdict, Mr Saseendran said.