The Kerala High Court says that BS-IV and BS-VI vehicle pollution certificates are valid for one year.
Title: S. Sadananda Naik v. The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways & Ors.
Decided on: 21 November, 2023
+ W.P. (C) No. 30776/2023
CORAM: HON’BLE Justice Dinesh Kumar Singh
Introduction
A government order (“GO”) issued by the Kerala State Government that established a uniform period of validity for Pollution Under Control (PUC) Certificates for all vehicle categories—regardless of whether they were produced in accordance with BS-VI (Bharat Stage Emission Standards-VI) or BS-IV (Bharat Stage Emission Standards-IV) standards—has been overturned by the Kerala High Court.
Facts of the Case
The State Government of Kerala issued the notification G.O.(Rt)No. 353/2022/ TRANS on August 22, 2022, which specifies the validity period and cost for Pollution Under Control (PUC) Certificates for a variety of vehicle categories, including two- and three-wheelers. This notice is being challenged in the current writ petition.
Courts analysis and decision
According to the requirement, the PUC Certificate’s validity may not exceed a year for cars built in accordance with BS-IV or BS-VI standards. In light of this, the court invalidated the challenged order/notification to the degree that it specified a consistent 6-month PUC Certificate validity duration for vehicles classified as BS-IV and BS-VI.
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Written by- Hargunn Kaur Makhija