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New petrol, diesel and compressed natural gas (CNG) light goods vehicles (LGVs), which have a gross vehicle weight of up to 3.5 tonnes and are categorised as N1 vehicles, will not be registered in Delhi from January 1, 2027, the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) said on Wednesday.
Moreover, non-electric LGVs with a gross vehicle weight between 3.5 tonnes and 7.5 tonnes, categorised as N2 vehicles, will be banned from registration in Delhi from January 1, 2028.
The CAQM order, issued on August 19, goes significantly beyond the Delhi government’s Electric Vehicle Policy notified on June 30. While Delhi had mandated that only electric N1 LGVs could be newly registered from January 1, 2027, it had not imposed an outright ban on non-electric N2 LGVs. CAQM has now brought N2 vehicles under the restrictions.
The order will affect major manufacturers of non-electric N1 and N2 commercial vehicles such as Tata Motors, Mahindra & Mahindra, Ashok Leyland, Maruti Suzuki and VE Commercial Vehicles. Their petrol, diesel and CNG models will progressively become ineligible for new registrations in parts of Delhi-NCR.
However, companies such as Tata Motors, Mahindra & Mahindra, Ashok Leyland, through subsidiary Switch Mobility, and VE Commercial Vehicles are present in the N1 segment with electric offerings. Electric LGV startups such as Euler Motors also hold a sizeable share of the N1 market.
The Commission said nine registered vehicle manufacturers currently offer 20 electric N1 models, providing sufficient product capacity for the first phase of the restrictions. It adopted a more cautious approach towards N2 vehicles because the electric market remains at an early stage.
CAQM noted that 2,744 N2 LGVs were newly registered in Delhi-NCR in 2025, but not a single one was electric. It also said four vehicle manufacturers had only six electric N2 models available. This prompted the Commission to give the N2 segment additional time before imposing an electric-only registration mandate.
Tata Motors, Mahindra & Mahindra, Ashok Leyland, Maruti Suzuki and VE Commercial Vehicles did not immediately respond to Business Standard’s queries.
For N1 vehicles, the restrictions will be implemented in three geographical stages. New petrol, diesel and CNG N1 vehicles will be barred in the Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi from January 1, 2027.
The ban will extend to five high-vehicle-density districts — Gurugram, Faridabad, Sonipat, Ghaziabad and Gautam Buddha Nagar — from July 1, 2027.
From January 1, 2028, new petrol and diesel N1 vehicles will also be barred in the remaining 18 NCR districts — Rewari, Jhajjar, Rohtak, Panipat, Palwal, Nuh, Bhiwani, Charkhi Dadri, Mahendragarh and Jind in Haryana; Meerut, Muzaffarnagar, Hapur, Bulandshahr, Baghpat and Shamli in Uttar Pradesh; and Alwar and Bharatpur in Rajasthan.
CNG N1 vehicles will continue to be permitted in these 18 districts.
For N2 vehicles, Delhi will prohibit new diesel, petrol and CNG registrations from January 1, 2028. The same restriction will apply in the five high-vehicle-density districts from July 1, 2028.
In the remaining 18 NCR districts, new diesel and petrol N2 registrations will be prohibited from January 1, 2029, while CNG N2 vehicles will continue to be permitted.
The Commission said charging infrastructure outside Delhi and the five high-vehicle-density districts remains at a nascent stage. This is why CNG N1 and N2 vehicles will continue to be permitted in those 18 districts even as diesel and petrol LGVs face registration bans.
CAQM said the bans were necessary because LGVs have a disproportionately high emissions impact despite accounting for a small share of the vehicle fleet.
LGVs are extensively used for e-commerce, logistics, courier services, fast-moving consumer goods distribution and other urban freight activities, resulting in high kilometres travelled per vehicle.
“LGVs account for an estimated 5.1 per cent of PM (particulate matter) emissions from the active vehicle fleet in the NCT of Delhi, 2.3 per cent in HVD Districts and 3.1 per cent in the rest of NCR. Though LGVs constitute only about 1.2 per cent of total active vehicle stock across the NCR, their contribution is approximately 3.3 per cent of the PM emissions,” the Commission said.
The Commission said the vehicular sector contributes about 23 per cent of the total PM2.5 load during winter and 18 per cent during summer in Delhi-NCR.
It said particulate pollution comes from several sources, with secondary particulate matter — particles formed through chemical reactions in the atmosphere — being a major contributor.
CAQM also questioned the long-term role of CNG as a cleaner fuel for LGVs. While CNG produces substantially lower direct particulate emissions than diesel, the Commission said it continues to generate nitrogen oxides (NOx), which are precursors to secondary PM2.5 formation.
The Commission said CNG accounted for nearly 70 per cent of new LGV registrations across NCR in 2025. In Delhi, CNG accounted for about 90 per cent of LGV sales, while diesel retained a substantial share in the high-vehicle-density districts and the rest of NCR.
CAQM cited Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) analysis showing that a BS-VI CNG LGV emits more than 57 times the PM2.5 emitted by a BS-VI CNG passenger car. BS-VI, or Bharat Stage VI, is India’s current vehicle emission standard and sets limits on pollutants such as NOx, particulate matter, carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons.
A BS-VI diesel LGV, meanwhile, emits approximately 130 times more PM2.5 than a BS-VI CNG passenger car, according to the analysis.
The Commission’s expert committee, constituted in December 2025, recommended shifting N1 and N2 LGVs towards electric vehicles in Delhi and the high-vehicle-density districts.
For the remaining NCR districts, it recommended EVs and CNG, taking into account the availability of charging infrastructure and the readiness of the electric vehicle ecosystem.
CAQM said the transition is supported by central schemes including PM E-DRIVE and PARIVARTAN, besides the Delhi EV Policy’s provisions for expanding charging and battery-swapping infrastructure. It said these measures would help support the transition towards cleaner LGVs.
The directions were issued by CAQM under the Commission for Air Quality Management in Capital Region and Adjoining Areas Act, 2021. CAQM directed the Delhi government and NCR state governments to ensure strict enforcement and give wide publicity to the new registration restrictions.
