The Registering and Licencing Authority in New Delhi is soon going to have a new request: FOR EVEN OR ODD VEHICLE NUMBERS for private cars on Delhi roads!
Reason is very simple. Owing to the rising pollution in Delhi, the Arvind Kejriwal government has announced that private vehicles with odd and even registration numbers will be allowed on Delhi roads on alternate days starting next month.
This means that from January 1, if vehicles with number plates ending with an odd number can be driven one day, only those ending with an even number can be brought out on Delhi roads the next day. This will not apply to public vehicles.
The government said it hoped to cut down vehicular pollution in the state by half with the measure, which is likely to be very controversial.
It was announced after an emergency meeting called by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday, a day after the Delhi High Court said living in Delhi was like “living in a gas chamber”.
The High Court and the National Green Tribunal or NGT have repeatedly sought workable action plans to combat the menace, and the court used strong words on Thursday when it ordered the Delhi government for a “time-bound action plan’ by December 21.
Plans submitted by the environment ministry and the Delhi government were “not comprehensive”, the judges said, because they did not specify responsibilities and a timeline.
The National Green Tribunal had earlier ripped into the Delhi government for not acting “seriously” on the menace. It has also called for a “stay-at-home” alert for children and older people.
