In a move which would have a far-reaching impact on the automobile sector, the Maharashtra Government has a set up a seven-member committee to study the possibility of banning petrol and diesel vehicles in order to phase them out in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR). The MMR comprises Mumbai city as well as areas of neighbouring Thane, Raigad and Palghar districts, taking worsening air quality into account.
The high-profile government committee, headed by retired IAS officer Sudhir Kumar Shrivastava, besides other panelists including state Transport Commissioner, Mumbai’s Joint Police Commissioner (traffic), Managing Director of Mahanagar Gas Limited, project manager of the Maharashtra State Power Distribution Company Limited (Mahavitaran), president of the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), and Joint Transport Commissioner (Enforcement-1), will submit a report with its recommendations within three months, according to a government resolution (GR) dated January 22, 2025.
The committee has been given powers to include experts in vaious fields as fellow panellists in order to get their feedback from them, the GR stated.
The GR is the result of a recent suo motu hearing of a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) on January 9 by the state High Court which had expressed serious concerns about traffic congestion and increasing pollution in Mumbai city leading to a negative impact on the quality of life and environment.
A Bombay High Court division bench of Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya and Justice Girish Kulkarni had directed the state government to form a committee of experts and civil administrators within a fortnight to consider whether it will be feasible to phase out diesel and petrol-based vehicles from Mumbai’s roads and permit only those running on CNG or electricity.
The court had stated that measures followed at present are inadequate to control vehicular emissions which are a major source of air pollution in Mumbai. It had emphasised the need for a thorough study to be conducted on whether it would be appropriate and feasible to phase out diesel and petrol-driven vehicles. The court had stated that the committee formed by the government must conduct its study within three months and submit its report.
Accordingly, the state government took cognisance of the Bombay High Court’s direction and issued the GR to form the high-profile committee of experts to study as well as submit a report on the feasibility of imposing a ban on petrol and diesel vehicles in the MMR, with the possibility of allowing only CNG and and electric vehicles.