Noida and Ghaziabad See App Trouble as No PUCC, No Fuel Rule Starts
The No PUCC, No Fuel Rule faced a major technical setback in Noida and Ghaziabad on its first day. The new system started on October 1, but a server problem disrupted PUCC checks at petrol pumps for most of the day.
The rule requires vehicles to have a valid Pollution Under Control Certificate (PUCC) before they can buy fuel. Authorities introduced the system to tackle vehicle pollution ahead of the winter smog season.
However, the verification app stopped working around 7 am on Thursday. It briefly became operational around 2 pm. The system failed again around 3:20 pm and remained unreliable into the evening.
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Officials blamed the problem on server overload. Ghaziabad District Supply Officer Amit Kumar Tiwari said the server could not handle the sudden increase in users. Officials contacted the technical team in Lucknow to resolve the issue.
The glitch created confusion at fuel stations in both cities. Some pumps continued selling fuel without PUCC verification. Others followed the rule whenever the application worked.
In Noida, officials had installed the application at 136 fuel stations across the district. Monitoring teams also visited stations to track implementation.
Motorists Face Problems at Petrol Pumps
The technical failure also affected people who wanted to renew their PUCC certificates. At one Ghaziabad station, several motorists could not complete the process because their registered mobile numbers were not updated.
Some second-hand vehicle owners faced another problem. Their vehicle records still carried the previous owner’s mobile number. Without the correct number, they could not receive the OTP needed for the process.
The rule had already pushed more motorists to update their certificates. Officials said the number of vehicles without valid PUCCs dropped from around 26,000 to 15,000 in 10 days before the rollout.
The first-day disruption does not mean the policy has been withdrawn. Officials said teams are working to fix the technical problems. Motorists in Noida and Ghaziabad should therefore keep their PUCC valid and update their vehicle and mobile details with the RTO.
The rollout will remain closely watched as authorities try to make the digital verification system stable across the region.
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