Noida: Vehicles without a valid Pollution Under Control Certificate (PUCC) will not be sold petrol or diesel at any fuel station in Noida and Ghaziabad from Oct 1, the district administrations said on Saturday.Noida district supply officer (DSO) Nilesh Utpal said the move follows an order issued by Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) on May 15 to control vehicle emissions that contribute significantly to PM2.5, nitrogen oxide and carbon monoxide levels.The commission issued the order under Section 12 of the CAQM Act, 2021, which gives it the power to issue binding directions and take all necessary measures to protect and improve air quality in NCR and adjoining areas.A PUCC is issued to vehicles that pass an emissions test. It can usually be obtained from PUCC centres outside fuel stations.To enforce the order, vehicles arriving at all fuel stations in the district are already being checked through Parivahan PUC portal, the DSO said. “Petrol pump operators have been directed to get the PUC portal app downloaded onto their staff’s mobile phones so that a vehicle’s PUCC status can be instantly verified using data shared by the transport department. This verification drive has been rolled out in phases across all fuel stations in the district,” he said.Delhi announced in June that motorists without a valid certificate will not be able to buy petrol, diesel or CNG from Nov 1.Ghaziabad DSO Amit Kumar Tiwari, meanwhile, told TOI that the supply department has begun checking pollution certificates at petrol pumps, starting with a trial at two outlets, Sona Fuel and Autocare. “The Parivahan PUC portal app was installed on the phones of the salesmen and owners at these pumps. They just need to enter a vehicle’s registration number to retrieve the vehicle’s PUC certificate details,” he said.Tiwari said fuel was provided only to vehicles found to have a valid certificate during the check.Driving without a valid PUCC attracts a fine of Rs 10,000 under Section 190(2) of the Motor Vehicles Act.Rapido driver Vikas Jatav said drivers had been hearing that such a notice would come soon. “We ensure that we have a valid PUCC, but now that it has been made compulsory, I will have to check its validity as well,” he said.
