Will ECC be scrapped? Nitin Gadkari questions Delhi on green initiatives amid levy charge

Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari said that during a meeting, he questioned what steps the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) was taking toward green initiatives while continuing to charge the levy, and urged that the Environment Compensation Charge (ECC) imposed on commercial vehicles travelling in and out of Delhi be scrapped.

He expressed concerns about whether the money collected is actually being used to address pollution as intended, Gadkari shared at an India Today event.

Gadkari mentioned when his ministry reviewed the funds collected under the levy, it found that although the charge was being imposed, the money was not being used to enhance air quality as originally intended.

He further said that officials from the MCD told him the green fee was an important source of revenue for the civic body. Gadkari proposed that the Delhi government could instead provide ₹800–900 crore as grants-in-aid to the corporation rather than retaining the levy.

Gadkari said officials pointed to a Supreme Court order to justify its continuation while highlighting the legal rationale behind the tax. He added that he had sought intervention so the court could review the matter and offer relief to those affected by the levy. The minister’s comments once again cast doubt on how the funds collected in the name of curbing pollution are being utilised.

Introduced by the Supreme Court of India in 2015, the ECC is imposed on commercial vehicles entering Delhi to curb air pollution. The fee, collected in addition to regular toll taxes, was intended to deter polluting vehicles from entering the capital and to fund projects aimed at improving public transport and pedestrian infrastructure.

The apex court revoked a 10-year-old exemption that allowed commercial vehicles transporting essential goods to enter Delhi without paying the ECC.

A bench led by Chief Justice of India B R Gavai, along with Justices K Vinod Chandran and N V Anjaria, issued the order on September 26, though it was released to the public only recently. The court observed that the exemption, originally granted in October 2015, was causing “genuine operational difficulties” and weakening the objective of the levy, according to PTI.

The bench approved an application filed by the MCD requesting the withdrawal of the “the exemption granted to commercial vehicles carrying Essential Commodities viz. Vegetables, Fruits, Milk, Grains, Egg., Ice (to be used as food item), Poultry Items...laden vehicles from ECC in pursuance to this courts order dated 09.10.2015”

The civic body stated that the exemption granted by the court had led to serious challenges, as vehicles must be stopped to verify whether they are transporting essential commodities. It said that this process causes prolonged halts, during which vehicles continue to emit smoke, thereby adding to air pollution.

The bench mentioned, “We find that the difficulty pointed out appears to be genuine. It is indeed difficult to find out a mechanism to verify from the outside as to what goods are being carried in such vehicles. As such, all vehicles are required to be stopped at checkposts and subjected to physical verification, which results in prolonged stoppages and aggravates the problem of air pollution.”