The Delhi high court on Wednesday asked the state government why it was necessary to run the odd-even traffic rule for more than a week, and wondered if it could end the scheme meant to check city’s pollution by Friday.
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The Court asked the government why it can’t restrict odd-even scheme to a week, when the inconvenience was being caused to the public at large. The court also sought a report from the Arvind Kejriwal government on changes in the level of pollution in the national capital since the scheme came into effect on January 1.
Posting the case for further hearing on Friday, the Bench observed that there were several practical difficulties with the odd-even policy. “We have permitted the government to run this scheme for one week during which they must have collected data relating to pollution levels in the city”, it said. The people of Delhi supported you despite inconvenience.
“The Delhi Government would be following the observation of the Delhi High Court and it would keep its point in front of the court also”.
“The primary goal was to get people thinking about pollution due to unmitigated use of cars and explore alternative mobility solutions, especially public transportation”.
“Hence, the exemptions for women vehicles have been given to ensure that there is no compromise on women’s safety”, the Delhi government said.
Last week, the High Court had refused to make an exception for lawyers, pointing out that doctors, for example, are also obliged to follow the new rules. “The present available public transport infrastructure is not sufficient to cater to such a huge demand”, the report said. Gadepalli of ITDP, that has implemented Ahmedabad’s BRTS system, said expecting the odd-even policy to dramatically reduce pollution levels overnight would be “silly” as there may be existing residues in the air. We also have to move a step.
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The Chief Justice of India, TS Thakur, has been carpooling to work with another judge, though he is exempted from the restrictions.
