Bhubaneswar, March 31: Thousands of people thronged automobile showrooms in and around the city today after the Supreme Court banned the sale and registration of BS III vehicles from April 1.

Transport officials said around 4,000 such vehicles, mostly two-wheelers, were sold on Friday and Saturday.

There was mad rush at the showrooms with them offering discounts of up to Rs 18,500 on motorcycles and up to Rs 12,500 on scooters of various companies. The showrooms also offered free insurance to buyers to clear their stock before April 1.

According to transport officials, around 7,500 vehicles are sold in the city every month but the apex court directive led to the mad rush, especially with the sellers offering discounts.

"Around 4,000 vehicles, mostly two-wheelers, were sold on Friday and Saturday in the city. BS III vehicles sold after March 31 will not be registered," said regional transport officer, Bhubaneswar II, S.K. Behera.

Around 100 showrooms are there under the two RTO offices in Bhubaneswar.

Many buyers intending to cash in on the sale went from one showroom to another but had to return empty-handed with stocks running out.

"I went to four showrooms to buy a scooter but the model I wanted was out of stock. I also went to some showrooms in Cuttack but even they did not have that one," said Arun Shashani, a resident of Saheed Nagar.

Several automobile showroom employees The Telegraph spoke to admitted that they had to send back prospective customers because their stocks had been exhausted.

"Most of the vehicles had been sold on Friday and the remaining ones were sold in the first hour of Saturday. But customers continued to visit the showroom throughout the day," said an employee of a showroom at Saheed Nagar.

Transport officials said most of the BS III variants of two-wheelers belonged to Hero Motocorp, Honda and Suzuki.

Speaking on four-wheelers, a transport official said: "Though all the leading car manufactures have switched over to the BS IV technology, a few Mahindra and Tata cars still come under the BS III category. Showrooms with four-wheelers of the BS III category also offered discounts in the range of Rs 30,000 to Rs 50,000 to clear their stock."

With stocks cleared, transport officials now apprehend delay in the delivery of vehicles from April 1.

"In the two-wheeler segment, very few manufacturers have switched over to the BS IV technology and they may take some time to launch the new vehicles. So, with limited stock, people have to wait to get a new two-wheeler," said a transport official.