Delhi is rolling out its odd-even car restrictions this month as a means to curb the record-high emissions in the capital. The World Health Organization named the city the most polluted city in the world.
The drive is an experimental initiative that aims to cut down on pollution by making private cars with odd and even license plates alternate usage days during the fortnight trial. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal devised the plan after a court ordered the government to tackle pollution levels that were more than 10 times the World Health Organisation's safe limits.
Photo Credit: BBC
But the plan has been garnering criticism for its long list of exemptions — like all women, top politicians, judges, police and prison officials and sick people. It also leaves out two-wheel vehicles such as motorbikes and scooters. The many two-wheeled vehicles account for one-third of the city's pollution rates. There are 5 million motorcyclists on the road still. Along with motorcyclists, trucks and goods vehicles have been regulated and are urged not to drive through the city.
License plate bans have been implemented in other cities like Paris, Athens, Mexico, Beijing and Berlin with moderate and mixed success. It's a good idea, but the onus is less on the consumer to invest in cleaner or hybrid cars because they could just leave the car at home and use it on some days. But the first few days in Delhi have been encouraging. There was much less traffic congestion.
“What I saw today all across Delhi was very encouraging,” said Anumita Roy Chowdhury, executive director of the think tank Centre for Science and Environment, to The Guardian. “There were very few even-numbered cars on the roads, and my overall sense is that people have accepted the need for such action But the biggest achievement today relates to public road transport. Not only were there more buses on the road, but due to less congestion the journey time of buses was much better. If Delhi is to succeed in this mission, only the metro is not enough. We need to augment and improve the bus system also.”
A Hectic Intersection in Delhi
Photo Credit: The Guardian
The real test comes today (Monday), when offices open for work, and the rest of the week, because other cities on the WHO's pollution index like Lucknow are watching closely to see if they can implement the same plan in their cities. Yet one of the bigger concessions is that Kejriwal noted that if the scheme greatly inconvenienced commuters and citizens, then it could be scrapped altogether.
Here's hoping that people can try out the experiment so that this plan can be improved and seen as a model of a city pitching in to fight pollution.
Main Image Photo Credit: The Guardian
Rumnique Nannar
Author
Rumnique Nannar is a new journalist with a passion for all things pop culture, film, and art. Rumnique was born in London, with a predilection for devouring English chocolate with her Vogue, ANOKHI, and Glamour magazines in tow. She is currently in her Journalism Masters at UBC. Connect ...
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