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New Delhi: The owner of an electric vehicle (EV) was issued a challan by Rajasthan Police for failing to present a PUC (Pollution Under Control) Certificate, and the exchange between the two parties has been captured in a viral video.

The exchange took place between an Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) of the state police and the owner of a Tata Tiago EV. In the end, the EV’s owner was fined Rs 1,500 for the missing certificate. According to reports, the incident happened in Rajasthan’s Nagaur.

How did the incident unfold?

The police officer stopped the Tata Tiago EV as the car used windshield shades. Soon, the car owner and the Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) became embroiled in an argument. The officer issued a fine of Rs 200 for the sunshades. The officer also fined the EV owner for failing to produce a pollution certificate. While the person argued that a Pollution Under Control (PUC) certificate was not needed for electric vehicles, the officer was unrelenting.

According to an NDTV report, the driver, as per police officials, argued about the removal of the car’s window shades when he was mistakenly issued a pollution violation ticket. The department is probing the matter, and the erroneous fine will be cancelled in the system.

Do EVs need a PUC certificate in India?

No. In India, EVs do not require a PUC certificate because they produce zero tailpipe emissions. Hence, they are exempt from regulations targeting internal combustion engines. However, there have been reports of some isolated, wrongful fines handed out to owners of EVs over a PUC certificate, as happened in Rajasthan. Notably, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has stated that battery-powered vehicles can be operated without periodic PUC checks. Those checks are done especially for vehicles powered by fossil fuels so that they do not cause air pollution.