Diesel car ban: 12,000 cars could be affected; Automakers hit back

A report in dna suggests that “over 12,000 diesel cars would have been sold in National Capital Region (NCR) between last Friday, when the National Green Tribunal (NGT) passed order banning registration of such cars, till January 6, 2016, the next date of hearing of the issue.” This number includes the cars that have already been booked, added the report. (READ: NGT bans new diesel cars in Delhi)

Diesel car giants in the country including Mahindra & Mahindra, Tata Motors, Hyundai, Toyota, Renault are expected to face the most severe of consequences of the NGT decision. Industry sources said the car manufacturer would not be able to sell a single diesel vehicle till the next hearing.

Automakers cry folly 
Blaming the diesel cars for Delhi’s pollution woes has been termed unjust by carmakers in the country. Vishnu Mathur, director general, Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), said, “It's not correct to blame only diesel cars for environment reasons. The decision should be holistic. This is a sudden order which has been made without consulting us. The Delhi pollution is largely due to city climatic conditions and very less due to diesel engines.”

Delhi- NCR contributes nearly 12% to passenger vehicle sales in India, of which diesel vehicles accounts for 30% of the total sales in the city, according to SIAM data.

Pawan Goenka, executive director of M&M, said, “This is injustice for the entire sector. What is the logic of banning vehicles compliant with BS-IV norms, which were made mandatory in October in certain states.”

Customers in the dark
NGT has directed that no new diesel vehicle would be registered in Delhi, and vehicles older than 10 years should be phased out completely. This is being viewed by carmakers as a major challenge for the consumer who is clueless on the delivery of the booked vehicle.

Rakesh Srivasatva, senior vice-president for sales and marketing at Hyundai Motor India said, “This sudden judicial directive has created concerns among buyers towards delivery of their vehicles, for which payment has already made. The government also needs to look at the diesel inventory at dealerships, which raise concerns towards the cost of inventory and its future.”

Need systematic planning
SIAM is also quoting the IIT-Kanpur study that says that passenger cars are responsible for only 2.5% of the pollution in Delhi.

In line with SIAM view, Pawan Goenka said, “BS-IV vehicles are contributing only 0.5% to the total particulate matter (PM) 2.5 load in Delhi. In the last 15 years PM has come down by 82% and mono-nitrogen oxides (NoX) by 51%. PM will further come down by another 80% from the current levels by the time BS-V is implemented.”

"We reserve our comments as the decision is pending with the government and the courts. However, the government should give serious view to create a robust roadmap for the automobile industry. The industry has already made plans to invest in diesel technology as per BS-V norms to be implemented by 2019, and such decisions can negatively impact the sector," Rakesh Srivastava added.

Source: dna