environment

Delhi’s New EV Policy Targets Two- and Three-Wheelers to Curb Air Pollution

Published on: 01 Jul 2026, 08:40 PM

Delhi's newly approved Electric Vehicle (EV) Policy is designed to significantly reduce air pollution in the capital. The policy focuses on vehicle categories that contribute the most to transport-related pollution.

According to a joint study by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) and the Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) on PM2.5 emissions from automobiles in Delhi-NCR, two-wheelers account for 25 per cent of vehicular PM2.5 pollution, while three-wheelers contribute another 17 per cent. Together, these two categories make up 42 per cent of pollution from the transport sector, making them primary targets for pollution control.

The new policy proposes to stop the registration of new petrol-powered two-wheelers from April 2028 and restrict the registration of new CNG-powered three-wheelers from the end of this year.

Data from the Vahan dashboard shows that Delhi's two-wheeler market remains dominated by petrol vehicles. In 2025, more than 4.92 lakh petrol two-wheelers were registered in the capital, compared to around 37,000 electric two-wheelers. In 2026 (up to June), petrol vehicles still account for the majority of new registrations, with over 2.54 lakh petrol two-wheelers registered against 25,424 EVs. Petrol-powered two-wheelers consistently accounted for more than half of all new two-wheeler registrations between 2020 and 2026, highlighting why this segment is a major focus of the policy.

The situation is different for three-wheelers, where the shift to electric mobility is already underway. In 2025, Delhi registered 59,543 electric three-wheelers, compared to only 8,180 CNG three-wheelers. EV registrations have surpassed CNG registrations every year since 2020. In 2026, electric three-wheeler registrations stand at 8,005, nearly double the 4,237 CNG vehicles registered during the same period.

Delhi's registration data reveals two contrasting trends. The transition to electric vehicles is already happening among three-wheelers, where EV registrations now far outnumber CNG vehicles. However, the two-wheeler market remains heavily dependent on petrol, with EVs still accounting for a small fraction of new registrations. This is precisely where Delhi's new EV policy places its biggest bet: transforming the vehicle segment that contributes 25 per cent of transport-related PM2.5 pollution.

Source: NDTV

Latest in Environment 10

environment

Idukki Villagers Re-erect Fences, Blocking Elephant Corridors After Fatal Attack

Residents of Panthadikkalam in Idukki have re-erected fences that the Forest department removed to allow elephant movement, following the death of a farmer in an elephant attack. The move has blocked traditional elephant routes, leaving six elephants roaming near the settlement. The Forest department plans to capture and relocate two problematic elephants, while an expert committee studies the conflict.

The Hindu 09 Oct 2026, 01:43 PM

environment

Wildlife law architect warns India's protected areas are shrinking under development pressure

Wildlife conservationist M.K. Ranjitsinh Jhala, chief architect of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, has warned that India's protected areas are shrinking amid growing pressure from development, mining and tourism. Speaking in Thiruvananthapuram, he urged that conservation look beyond iconic animals to habitats and the ecological systems that sustain people. Officials and speakers at the event called for a people-centred approach that links conservation with local livelihoods.

The Hindu 05 Oct 2026, 03:39 PM

environment

Scientists Can Now Trace the Damage a Single Coal Mine or Gas Project Will Cause

Scientists have released an open-source tool that estimates how much a single fossil fuel project will warm the planet and the specific damage it will cause, from heatwave deaths in Europe to coral loss on the Great Barrier Reef. The Carbon Impacts Tracer applies established attribution science to individual coal, oil and gas developments, weakening the argument that any one project's emissions are too small to matter.

The Hindu 01 Oct 2026, 01:51 PM

environment

CAQM asks NCR states to tighten checks on vehicular pollution, stubble burning

The CAQM has directed enforcing agencies across the National Capital Region to ensure strict compliance with its directions, focusing on vehicular and industrial emissions, stubble burning and dust from roads and construction. The directions were reviewed at a meeting of its Sub-Committee on Safeguarding and Enforcement, chaired by CAQM Chairperson Rajesh Verma, which also asked agencies to strengthen inspection and monitoring.

The Hindu 01 Oct 2026, 04:58 AM

environment

Ganesh festival waste in Hyderabad up 40% in a year, four times the 2023 level

Hyderabad collected 4,527 metric tonnes of waste during the 11 days of Ganesh Chaturthi in 2026, about 40 per cent more than last year and more than four times the 2023 figure. The rise came despite 136 GHMC sanitation teams and over 6,000 sweepers working round the clock, with 1.15 lakh idols immersed in city lakes.

The Hindu 26 Sep 2026, 03:50 PM

environment

Kedarnath's Five-Month Waste Tally Crosses 50 Tonnes, More Than Double Last Season's Total

Kedarnath generated 50.30 metric tonnes of waste between April and August 2026, more than two and a half times the total collected in the whole of the previous pilgrimage season, according to Nagar Panchayat data released under an RTI request. The town's landfills remain largely unused so far, but the activist who sought the data warns that rising waste volumes threaten the ecologically sensitive Himalayan region.

The Hindu 25 Sep 2026, 05:41 AM

environment

Hebbal tunnel project: 1,128 trees of 70+ species to be felled; full list still unpublished

Documents show that over 70 tree species are among the 1,128 trees marked for felling along a 2.2-km stretch for Bengaluru's Hebbal short tunnel project, though the full list has not been made public. Experts say the loss of green cover could raise local temperatures and damage habitats, while a Change.org petition opposing the project has crossed 20,000 signatures.

The Hindu 24 Sep 2026, 05:51 AM

environment

Western Ghats draft is in Hindi and English only. A coalition has now released a Kannada translation

A coalition of organisations has released a Kannada translation of the seventh draft notification on the Western Ghats Ecologically Sensitive Area, which was otherwise available only in Hindi and English. Karnataka holds the largest share of the proposed protected area, and the coalition says residents cannot respond to a notification they cannot read.

The Hindu 22 Sep 2026, 03:46 PM

environment

37 Water Sources in 25 Tamil Nadu Villages Unfit to Drink: Inside the SIPCOT Perundurai Crisis

The Tamil Nadu Water Supply and Drainage Board found water from 37 sources in 25 villages around the SIPCOT Industrial Growth Centre at Perundurai, Erode district, unfit for drinking. A ₹136.76-crore Common Effluent Treatment Plant is being built to treat contaminated seepage and resupply industries, but no long-term plan for the affected villages or the aquifer has been finalised yet.

The Hindu 22 Sep 2026, 01:53 PM

environment

Telangana sets up climate centre for cities, launches urban climate atlas

Telangana has inaugurated the State Climate Centre for Cities under the CITIIS Programme 2.0, a nodal body that will handle climate data, risk studies and municipal climate action plans. The government also launched the Telangana Urban Climate Atlas, a digital platform mapping climate risks, vulnerabilities and emissions across cities.

The Hindu 17 Sep 2026, 03:50 PM

→ View All Environment News