The Delhi High Court on Friday quashed lieutenant Governor’s (lG) order disallowing cycle rickshaw to ply on the arterial roads, expressing anguish over the manner in which the Delhi Government has made changes in the decision of experts over their plying on these roads.
Setting aside the l-G’s November 21, 2012 order, a bench of justices S Ravindra Bhat and S Muralidhar said the decision not to allow rickshaws to ply on carriageways of arterial roads appears to have been taken unilaterally by the lG without referring the issue back to the UTTIPEC.
“This decision, apart from not respecting the democratised process put in place through the UTTIPEC (headed by the l-G himself), is also at variance with the decision of the STF constituted by the court. Also, such a decision has the potential of being interpreted as approving a ban on plying of cycle rickshaws on arterial roads that do not have a separate NMV lane," the court said adding this was not consistent with the Delhi Master Plan 2021 provisions for equitable spaces for non-motorised vehicles(NMV)s on roads.
"The court finds the above decision unsustainable as it overlooks the decision-making process put in place through the Unified Traffic and Transportation Infrastructure (PlG And ENGG) Centre (UTTIPEC) and the Special Task Force (STF). Accordingly, the court sets aside the decision of the lG taken at the meeting of the UTTIPEC held on November 21, 2012," the court said.
To avoid multiplicity of agencies taking overlapping decisions on the issue, the court directed a meeting of the STF and the UTTIPEC to be jointly convened by the l-G within the next four weeks to consider the issue of providing NMV lanes on at least five arterial roads including the stretches suggested by the STF and the petitioner NGO.
The court also disapproved of a proposed plan of PWD for traffic in Chandni Chowk. In the proposed plan, prepared by the Shahjahanabad Redevelopment Corporation (SRDC) does not specify the lanes for non-motorised vehicles in its zonal plan.
The bench's remarks came on the submissions made by the counsel of Manushi Sangathan, an NGO, Indira Unniyar, that the government has made changes in decision of experts on the issue of cycle rickshaw and she referred to the minutes of the 40th meeting held by the governing body of Unified Traffic and Transportation Infrastructure (PlG. And ENGG) Centre (UTTIPEC).