As you wait to pass the toll gates at the Delhi-Uttar Pradesh border near Ghaziabad or Delhi-Gurgaon border, the long line of trucks waiting to get entry is visible from miles away. Most are on their way to other parts of the country, via Delhi. Inordinate delay in making of the Eastern and Western Peripheral Expressways to decongest the national Capital roads, the Delhi Government is mulling over an alternate arrangement.
With roughly 1 lakh-1.5 lakh heavy commercial vehicles criss-crossing the Capital roads and a majority of them parking vehicles for various reasons on the roads, the Delhi Chief Secretary has constituted a high-level committee to explore possibilities of giving them parking space at some intervals so that they do not become hazardous for Delhi riders.
The committee will look for land space abreast the roads like — GT Karnal NH-1, NH-24, NH-8 frequented by the commercial vehicles, most of them trucks and lorries whose drivers flout all norms of driving while using the national Capital’s road infrastructure. Top sources told The Pioneer that Chief Secretary Sanjay Kumar Srivastava has proposed that a high-level committee comprising officers of DSIIDC, Transport Department, IT, Environment, New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC), may be constituted. The committee will ask Delhi Development Authority (DDA) to allot land at different locations. According to officials, at least 3 lakh-4 lakh non-destined vehicles enter Delhi every month due to non-completion of Eastern and Western Peripheral Expressways, causing increasing pollution level and congestion in the national Capital. The work on the Peripheral Expressways is going at a slow pace. As far as the Eastern Expressway is concerned, the project is still on paper.
Officials said that the Government will ask DDA to provide land for parking to commercial vehicles coming to Delhi at different locations. “It would be a temporary arrangement for these commercial vehicles,” informed officials. The High Powered Committee on water and air pollution, constituted by the lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung, has also recommended that non-destined vehicles to enter Delhi be enforced strictly by the Commissioner of Police. The Committee also stressed for better coordination between MCDs, VAT, Traffic Police and Transport Department to ensure strict action is taken as per law against non-destined vehicles.
According to estimates by the municipal corporations, 30 lakh commercial vehicles - around 1,00,000 every day - cross Delhi borders every month. These vehicles end their journey in Delhi and pay the corporations a toll tax. Unofficial estimates by sources in the Transport Department - which is supposed to enforce the rules - pegged the number at over a lakh trucks every day. However, many trucks do not end their journey in Delhi and are often overloaded. All use the city’s infrastructure, spew deadly smoke and increase pollution levels and trigger traffic jams.
In December 2012, the Delhi Chief Secretary decided to explore the possibility of restricting entry of heavy vehicles to six-eight points. Nothing has happened till date. Earlier this year, the EPCA observed that no agency was willing to take responsibility for implementing the SC order. In January, the EPCA also said entry of non-destined trucks - vehicles not meant for Delhi - was increasing air pollution levels in the city.
In 2001, the Supreme Court had ordered that from January 2002, “No heavy, medium or light goods vehicles will ply on interstate routes by passing through Delhi or New Delhi”. Only those goods vehicles which on payment of octroi/toll tax carry goods to or from Delhi would be allowed to ply, it declared. More than a decade later, the order remains merely on paper. Neither the corporations, the Transport Department nor Delhi Police is willing to take responsibility for implementing it.