Get that polluting auto off the roa

Get that polluting auto off the roads


Raghavendra RFirst Published : 12 May 2009 08:50:25 AM ISTLast Updated : 12 May 2009 10:26:22 AM IST
BANGALORE: Even after more than a decade of a Supreme Court directive to ban the plying of autorickshaws that are more than 15 years old, neither the State government nor the State Transport Department have taken the directive seriously to enforce it in the state.
The Apex Court directive, if implemented, helps to take the polluting old two-stroke autorickshaws off the roads in particular and can phase out old commercial and passenger transport vehicles subsequently as well.
It may be recalled here that a meeting was held on September 21, 1998 to discuss traffic improvement rules to control the burgeoning vehicular traffic.
The Transport & Home General Secretary, Transport Secretary, State Planning Board Vice President Dr DM Nanjundappa, Transport Commissioner, Joint Commissioner Transport and Deputy Secretary for Transport Department had attended the meeting.
Issues like banning the plying of autorickshaws that are more than 15 years old as per the directive of Supreme Court, banning of autorickshaws in certain localities, especially in the central parts of the city, and revoking the sealing on issuing new autorickshaw cab permits were discussed in the meeting. The Transport Commissioner and Transport Secretary was informed in the meeting to take steps to ban the plying of autorickshaws that are more than 15 years old as per the directive of Supreme Court. However, the issue has remained in cold storage since then.
Bangalore Auto Drivers’ Souharda Co-operative Limited president Somashekar lamented that due to lack of successive governments and Transport Department action, the Apex Court directive has not been enforced here.
“By implementing the directive, air and noise pollution can be controlled and eliminated thereby making Bangalore a ‘Green City’,” he said.Somashekar informed that there are about 78,000 authorised autorickshaws plying in the city and another 25,000 to 30,000 unauthorised autorickshaws.
“If the ban comes in place, around 54,000 autorickshaws will go off the roads,” he said, and added that for a better tomorrow all old commercial and passenger transport vehicles that are more than 15 years old should be scrapped by the government.
Apart from the Rs 10,000 subsidy by the government to switch over from two-stroke to four-stroke autorickshaw, Somashekar said that autorickshaw and LPG kit manufacturers should also give discounts for switching over to a new autorickshaw.
“That apart, finance for new autorickshaws should be given through D Devaraj Urs Hindulida Vargagala Abhiruddhi Nigama, Dr BR Ambedkar Abhiruddhi Nigama, Alpasankyatara Abhiruddhi Nigama, Pradhan Mantri Rojgyar Yojane and other nationalised banks as the rate of interest is less here,” he said.