The Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee government?s shadow boxing with polluting vehicles is following a familiar path ? declaration of intent, flurry of protests, a quick U-turn and a protracted court battle.

On Monday, learning of the government move to extend the phase-out deadline for pre-1990 vehicles, environmentalist Subhas Dutta said he would seek Supreme Court?s intervention in combating automobile pollution in Calcutta.

?The government?s phase-out of old vehicles is a never-ending process. I will bring the matter to the notice of the Supreme Court so that Calcutta is directly monitored by the apex court,? said Dutta.

With its eye on Assembly elections 2006, the government is set to push back its crackdown on old and polluting commercial vehicles in the Calcutta Metropolitan Area (CMA) by another six months.

In May, the state government had announced a ban on plying of pre-1990 vehicles in the CMA, in a phased manner.

Transport secretary Sumantra Chowdhury refused to react to the Metro story on Monday and reveal whether the government had decided on an extension. ?We will review the situation in the third week of December and then decide on our course of action,? he said.

Chowdhury claimed the government hasn?t found much support in its clean-fuel drive. ?Despite repeated invitations and reminders, officials from the petroleum ministry haven?t come to meet us. They aren?t giving adequate importance to the issue,? he claimed, citing the November 22 meeting where neither an official from IOC, the main supplier of automobile LPG, nor Citu leader Anadi Shaw had turned up.

?Nothing will change by December 31. The government must delay the process and allow operators and owners more time to replace their vehicles,? Shaw said.

The auto-emission dilly-dally has left pressure groups fuming. ?The chief minister has the vision, but his government lacks the political will to take unpleasant decisions like this, as is obvious on this issue,? said Viji Iyenger of Concern for Calcutta, an NGO that has been battling for clean air in the city.