Will the Air Really Become Clean?
For the national capital Delhi, 'clean air' has now become more of a luxury than a basic necessity. Every year, between November and January, when a toxic blanket of smog engulfs Delhi, the wheel of debate stops once again at pollution. The growing crowd of vehicles on the roads and the smoke emanating from their silencers is riddling the lungs of Delhi. But now, on the threshold of 2026, Delhi is taking a step towards another major technological revolution. The 'Delhi Electric Vehicle Policy 2.0' [EV Policy 2.0], which came into effect from July 1, 2026, is not just a government document, but an ambitious resolve to save the very existence of Delhi. The question is, will this policy be able to achieve what all the efforts of the last 25 years could not?
Efforts to stop vehicular pollution in Delhi are nothing new. Its roots lie hidden in that historic decision of 2001, which changed the colour of Delhi's roads. The Supreme Court had set a deadline of March 31, 2001, under which it was made mandatory to convert Delhi's petrol autos and diesel buses to 'Compressed Natural Gas' i.e. CNG.
The court had given a frightening warning in its 1998 judgment. The court had noted that in 1970, pollution from vehicles was only 20 percent of the total air pollution, which had increased to 70 percent by 1998. The court had ordered immediate action to "arrest the growing air pollution". At that time CNG was introduced as 'clean fuel' and Delhi became one of the select cities in the world where public transport ran entirely on gas.
But with time, this solution too started falling short. Despite the arrival of CNG, Delhi continued to choke every year. The Air Quality Index [AQI] reaching dangerous levels in the winter season became a new 'normal' reality. In January 2026, a fresh report by the Commission for Air Quality Management [CAQM] reiterated the same bitter truth: the biggest source of pollution within Delhi is still 'transport'. According to the report, whether it is petrol, diesel or CNG - the emission from the tailpipe of vehicles is playing the biggest role in making the urban air toxic. Now the time has come for another big shift - from CNG to electric mobility.
The Journey from EV 1.0 to EV 2.0
Delhi announced its first electric vehicle policy in the year 2020. At that time, the government's goal was very clear - by 2024, 1 out of every 4 vehicles sold in Delhi should be electric. That is, 25 percent of total sales should be electric vehicles. But data from the 'Vahan' portal shows that reality remained far from expectations.
In 2024, a total of 7.11 lakh vehicles were registered in Delhi, out of which only 85,377 vehicles were electric or battery-operated. This was only 12 percent of the total registrations. In 2025, some improvement was seen and there was a 42 percent increase in the registration of electric vehicles. This year, out of a total of 8.18 lakh vehicles, 1.21 lakh were electric or hybrid, which is about 15 percent. Although the pace was increasing, achieving the target of 25 percent was still a big challenge.
This is the background that gave birth to 'EV Policy 2.0'. This new policy, effective from July 1, 2026, will run till March 31, 2030, for which the government has allocated a huge budget of Rs 15,000 crore. This policy is not limited to just giving subsidies, but it is a 'deadline' based change that limits the future of petrol and diesel vehicles on Delhi's roads.
'Surgical Strike' on Two-Wheelers
The most revolutionary aspect of this new policy is that for the first time, 'two-wheelers' have been placed at the centre of reforms. About 67 percent of the total vehicles plying on Delhi's roads are two-wheelers. Until now, bikes and scooters have always been exempted in all pollution control measures.
The report of the Comptroller and Auditor General [CAG] presented in April 2026 raised strong objection to this anomaly. The CAG found that between 2017 and 2020, when the 'Odd-Even' scheme was implemented 5 times in Delhi, two-wheelers were kept out of it every time. According to the report, in 2019, 66 percent [about 75.56 lakh] of Delhi's total registered vehicles were two-wheelers, which were emitting smoke on the roads even on peak pollution days. Out of 8.18 lakh vehicles registered in 2025, 5.32 lakh alone were two-wheelers.
EV Policy 2.0 has recognized this weakness. The policy has a clear order that from April 1, 2028, only electric two-wheelers will be registered in Delhi. Along with this, from January 1, 2027, only electric three-wheelers and goods-carrying commercial vehicles will be newly registered. This means that old vehicles will remain on the roads, but every new bike, scooter and auto coming in will be electric. The government believes that these two categories - two-wheelers and commercial vehicles - are used daily very heavily, so their becoming electric will bring the fastest improvement in air quality.
The Government's Vision and Challenges
While launching the new policy, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta described it as 'simple and more beneficial'. She said, "We are building a capital that is healthier and ready for the next generation. The success of this policy will not be measured by the number of EVs on the roads, but by the improvement in the quality of life of Delhiites."
However, this path is not so easy. Delhi Cabinet Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa clarified on social media that this does not mean an immediate end to petrol vehicles, but the government's intention is to bring an 'electrification mandate' for four-wheelers in the future as well. The government is preparing a framework where polluting and less fuel-efficient vehicles will be disincentivized.[cars]
The real challenge is of infrastructure. Will there be enough charging points in Delhi by 2030 for lakhs of electric vehicles to run without any hindrance? Do we have robust arrangements for battery recycling and disposal? An outlay of Rs 15,000 crore is a large amount, but its proper implementation will decide the success of this policy.
The Target of 2030
The CAG report had also warned that between 2016 and 2020 [excluding the Covid lockdown], no permanent reduction in Delhi's pollution levels was observed. This means that the measures taken so far were like 'band-aids', which covered the wound for some time but did not heal it.
Delhi now stands again in the situation of 2001. Just as there was a major strategic shift from petrol to CNG then, today a similar shift is happening towards electric. The ban on petrol-diesel vehicles that have completed their age and now EV Policy 2.0 - these are two strong pillars of Delhi's battle for existence.
If Delhi achieves its goals by 2030, it will be an example to the world of how a densely populated metropolis can make its air breathable again with its technological and political willpower. In 2001 we changed the engine, in 2026 we are changing the technology. It is hoped that this time the result will be visible not only in statistics, but in the clean blue sky of Delhi.