Supreme Court Declines Nationwide Vehicle Star-Rating Demand
The Indian Supreme Court has refused to entertain a petition seeking the introduction of a nationwide vehicle star-rating system aimed at curbing air pollution and helping consumers make environmentally informed choices.
The petition argued that a one-to-five-star rating based on fuel efficiency and CO₂ emissions should be mandated for vehicles, similar to systems in other countries, and cited that vehicle emissions contribute significantly to pollution-related deaths and illnesses. The bench headed by Chief Justice B.R. Gavai and Justice K. Vinod Chandran noted this issue falls within the domain of government policy rather than judicial mandate and directed the petitioner to approach the Union of India for consideration.
Currently, India follows safety-based crash test protocols through the Bharat New Car Assessment Programme (BNCAP), but a nationally enforced vehicle emissions star-rating system has not been implemented. For the tyre industry and mobility ecosystem, the ruling means that emissions-based consumer labels may take longer to become mandatory. Consequently, tyre manufacturers and service providers must continue to focus on standards such as rolling resistance, durability, and replacement cycles in lieu of an emissions-based rating consumer label.
Editor’s View
The decision by the Supreme Court signals that regulatory shifts, including those affecting vehicle emissions and consumer ratings, may face extended timelines. For the tyre industry, this means continued reliance on existing material-level specifications (load index, rolling resistance, wear-rate) rather than expecting immediate change driven by star-ratings. Tyre makers should stay ready: should a national emissions-rating mark gain traction, tyres with lower rolling resistance, higher durability, and better integration with vehicle-efficiency metrics may gain prominence ahead of competitors.
