New Delhi, July 31: The Supreme Court on Friday barred the registration of BS-IV vehicles till further notice and expressed its displeasure on the large number of vehicles that were sold in March during the lockdown period. A Bench headed by Justice Arun Mishra said that an unusual number of BS-IV vehicles were sold during the lockdown. The apex court sought details of the advertisements which were made by car dealers since March.

The Court set the next date for a hearing on August 13. In March, an application was filed by the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA) seeking the extension of sale and registration of BS-IV vehicles for a month. Supreme Court Bars Registration of BS-IV Vehicles Till Further Orders, Expresses Displeasure Over Sale of Large Number of Vehicles During Lockdown.

The FADA while approaching the top court had sought extension of the March 31 deadline for a loss of sales period due to lockdown. The FADA had also cited large possible bankruptcies, jobs at stake.

In March, the Bench had thereby relaxed the March 31 deadline to clear the unsold stock of BS-IV vehicles. It had allowed only 10 per cent of unsold BS-IV vehicles to be sold within 10 days of the end of the lockdown due to COVID-19.

This scenario developed as such because India decided to switch to the world's cleanest emissions standard from April 1. It has gone straight to Euro-VI emission standards from Euro-IV.