Vehicles older than 15 years will not be allowed to refuel in the national capital after March 31, Delhi Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa said on Saturday.

“Instructions will be issued to fuel station owners to not provide fuel to overage vehicles,” Sirsa told reporters after a meeting with officials on measures to curb air pollution in the national capital. “Around 80% of the fuel stations in Delhi are already equipped with gadgets to identify such vehicles. By March 31, this technology will be extended to all filling stations.”

Old vehicles contribute significantly to air pollution because they often lack advanced emission control technology, have worn-out engine components and are less fuel-efficient than modern automobiles.

The Bharatiya Janata Party leader also said that a team would be formed to prevent vehicles older than 15 years from entering and exiting Delhi.

“There are some big hotels in Delhi, some big office complexes, Delhi airport, big construction sites,” Sirsa said. “We are going to make it mandatory there that they should immediately install anti-smog guns so that pollution can be controlled.”

“We will ensure that when there is severe pollution in Delhi, rain can be caused through cloud seeding and pollution can be controlled,” Sirsa added.

Cloud seeding is a weather modification technique that involves adding small amounts of minute particulate matter, such as silver iodide, to clouds, which gives their moisture something to adhere to and form droplets. Gradually, these droplets merge and become heavy enough to precipitate as rain.

The BJP government in Delhi is not the first to propose cloud seeding as a pollution control measure. However, the method’s efficacy is debated.

Sirsa also accused the previous Aam Aadmi Party government in the national capital of not taking measures to curb air pollution, The Hindu reported. “Thousands of crores given by the Centre were not used by them,” he claimed.

He add that only 31.8% of the funds disbursed by the Centre to Delhi under the National Clean Air Programme was used by the previous government. However, underutilisation of clean air funds is a nationwide phenomenon. As of January, only 63% of all funds disbursed to states and Union Territories had been utilised.