Delhi’s interstate border checks trigger massive traffic snarls amid BS-VI restrictions

Intensified vehicle checks at Delhi’s interstate borders to enforce pollution-control restrictions triggered massive traffic snarls on Monday, leaving commuters stranded for hours as long queues built up on roads connecting the national capital with neighbouring Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.

Heavy congestion was reported at several entry points, including the Delhi-Gurugram, Delhi-Noida, Delhi-Ghaziabad, Delhi-Sonipat and Delhi-Najafgarh borders, as enforcement teams checked vehicles for compliance with the prescribed emission standards.

The Delhi-Gurugram border witnessed particularly heavy congestion, with traffic on NH-48 remaining backed up for several kilometres near the Sirhaul toll plaza. The snarls also affected the main carriageway and service roads.

Similar traffic jams were reported near Noida and Ghaziabad, where vehicles were stopped during checks to ensure compliance with the restrictions.

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At the Aya Nagar border, Delhi Traffic Police and Transport Department enforcement teams intensified checking and turned back vehicles that did not meet the prescribed BS-VI emission standards.

Senior Delhi Traffic Police officers said that all borders, under different ranges, were following the pollution-control guidelines, adding that vehicles below the BS-VI standards were being sent back. They also mentioned that fines were being issued for violations and incomplete vehicle documentation.

These restrictions became effective on November 1 as part of the winter pollution-control measures. Under the new arrangement, petrol and diesel vehicles registered outside Delhi that do not comply with BS-VI emission standards are barred from entering the national capital.

Electric and CNG vehicles, along with BS-VI-compliant vehicles, are exempt from these restrictions.

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The enforcement is being jointly carried out by the Delhi Environment and Transport Departments, along with the traffic police, at several entry points, including Rajokri on NH-48, DND Flyway, Ghazipur, Singhu, Tikri, and Badarpur.

These measures aim to reduce vehicular emissions during the winter months when air pollution levels in the national capital typically rise.

The Northern range of the Delhi Traffic Police said in a statement, “The Northern Range Traffic Police has intensified checking at various Delhi border points. Special enforcement teams were deployed at the borders to ensure effective implementation of the prescribed restrictions.”

The statement also noted that from midnight on November 1 to noon on November 2, teams checked a total of 7,657 vehicles, of which 609 non-compliant vehicles were turned back.

The drive was conducted to ensure strict adherence to GRAP-related vehicle restrictions and to prevent the entry of vehicles not meeting the prescribed emission standards, the statement read.