The Delhi Government got a breather on Monday as the National Green Tribunal (NGT) stayed for two weeks its order seeking removal of diesel vehicles older than ten years from Capital’s roads. Following the stay order, transport associations in Delhi also called off their proposed strike that was to begin on Monday night.
In a related development, truckers also met Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari at his office at Transport Bhavan where they were assured full cooperation in the matter by the Minister. Gadkari also said that if needed, the Central Government would bring an Act in Parliament to give relief to transporters.
The NGT has sought suggestions for better implementation of its order from the Delhi Government. The tribunal directed the Delhi Government and other Government departments to submit scientifically-backed views by May 1, the next date of hearing.
The counsel for Delhi Government had conveyed to the tribunal that the Government was finding it really difficult to implement its order. Seeking more time to implement the ban, Delhi Government’s counsel Zubeida Beghum contended that essential services like water, milk, vegetable supply and garbage removal were being hit due to the order.
Delhi Transport Minister Gopal Rai, who on Monday held a joint meeting with transport officials of Uttar Pradesh (UP), Delhi and Haryana to discuss an effective way to implement the NGT’s order, said that the Delhi Government along with UP and Haryana would approach the Centre to seek an amendment in the Motor Vehicle Act to give them “legal rights” to impound such vehicles. According to the Government, there is currently no provision in the existing law that empowers departments concerned to impound diesel vehicles older than ten years.
In Monday’s order, the Bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar said: “During the period of two weeks that we have provided to all the concerned authorities there shall be no impounding of vehicles on account of age. In furtherance to our earlier orders we make it clear that we are varying our directions only to this limited extent...” Talking to The Pioneer, Delhi Goods Transport Association general secretary Rajinder Kapoor said truckers have decided to call off their strike after the NGT’s stay order.
“We have urged Delhi Government and the Centre to file an appeal in the Supreme Court against the draconian order. The tribunal should focus on fitness instead of age of vehicle,” Kapoor said, adding that the fitness test age of vehicle is 15 years in the Act.
Hailing the NGT’s stay order, the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT)’s national secretary general Pravin Khandelwal said it will provide a breather to transporters and the trading community in Delhi.
In a letter to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, the CAIT urged him to constitute a Special Working Group immediately to arrive at a permanent unanimous solution to the problem of pollution in the Capital. There are over six lakh diesel vehicles in Delhi that include 86,586 commercial ones. Of these, 1.18 lakh are private and 34,659 are commercial vehicles older than ten years. Over 1.5 lakh vehicles from neighboring states pass through Delhi daily.
The tribunal made it clear that diesel vehicles are prohibited because of the high density of traffic and by sending them to other areas greater pollution is “likely to be shifted to places of lesser density of vehicles and lesser pollution because of the expanse of air and open area available there”. The NGT also asked the Delhi Government to provide public transport vehicles on priority basis to all the places which have high commercial activity, markets or industrial areas.