Calcutta High Court has set aside a notification issued by the government without its permission to facilitate a backdoor entry for banned two-stroke autos registered after August 2000.

“There shall be no deviation from the court’s order dated July 18, 2008, to phase out polluting vehicles. The government notification (allowing two-stroke autos less than nine years old to convert to LPG and stay on the road) stands cancelled,” the green bench of Chief Justice S.S. Nijjar and Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghosh ruled on Thursday.

When Ashish Chakrabarti, the counsel for the Calcutta Autorickshaw Operators’ Association, argued that those who used to earn a living driving two-stroke autos were jobless and on the brink of starvation, Chief Justice Nijjar asked: “Between the prospect of starvation and death (because of pollution), which is more worrying?”

Chakrabarti then asked for “permission to ply till Puja”, to which the bench replied: “No more circulars or notifications must be issued by the government.”

New transport minister Ranjit Kundu termed the court’s order “upsetting”.

“Some of those who had taken loans two-three years ago to buy autos have yet to repay the full amount,” he said, sympathising with those driving polluting autos rather than those dying because of pollution.

The notification allowing two-stroke autos less than nine years old to use retrofitted LPG kits and make an official comeback was issued on August 13.

“We have decided that all two-stroke autos registered after August 2000 can apply for conversion to LPG. If they can produce an acknowledgement of their application for conversion from the public vehicles department, they can ply freely on city roads,” transport secretary Sumantra Chowdhury had declared a few days earlier.

On Thursday, advocate-general Balai Ray made an unconvincing submission on the government’s endeavour — or the lack of it — to enforce the ban on two-stroke autos and other commercial vehicles over 15 years old with effect from August 1.“We have taken all possible steps to enforce the court’s order,” he said.

While the bench did not ask the advocate-general to specify what “steps” were taken in the 27 days since the foul-fume crackdown began, it did warn the government against attempting to tweak rules to turn a section of the two-stroke fleet street legal.

On the auto brigade’s contention that there were too few LPG outlets in the city for a fleet that could potentially grow to over 30,000, the court said inadequate availability of clean fuel could not be an excuse to return to the pre-ban days.

It asked the central explosives department to process all pending applications for LPG pumps in the city within a fortnight of receiving the order.

The court also cracked the whip on nationalised banks for delaying disbursement of loans to auto operators willing to switch to four-stroke, LPG-compliant vehicles.“All applications should be screened and loans disbursed to eligible applicants within days of receiving their papers.”

Two-stroke autos that were plying on the sly in the first couple of weeks since the ban took effect have now begun ferrying passengers openly in both north and south Calcutta. “Our entire two-stroke fleet in Metiabruz is on the road. We have an understanding with the local police stations,” said an auto driver from the area.

In the north, many old autos have undergone a green makeover with mere paint and brush.

Commercial vehicles over 15 years old are also gradually returning to the streets despite the Supreme Court refusing a stay on the ban.