Choking Delhi may return to odd-even

New Delhi: The Delhi government may bring back the odd-even scheme to restrict the number of cars on the road given the increase in pollution levels, Transport Minister Kailash Gahlot has said. The scheme is likely to start from the next Wednesday.

The minister on Wednesday wrote to the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) and senior officials of his ministry, asking them to be "fully geared up" for implementation of the odd-even scheme.

"With the increase in pollution levels in Delhi, the government may have to resort to emergency measures, including the odd-even scheme," he said.

The scheme, based on the last digit of the vehicle's registration number of cars, was implemented twice in 2016 -- from January 1-15 and April 15-30. Under the scheme, odd and even numbered cars ply on alternate days.

It could be put in place when air pollution levels are in the 'emergency' category for 48 hours or more.

Last week, the Supreme Court-appointed Environment Pollution Control Authority (EPCA), a body empowered to enforce the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), had said it would not hesitate to roll out the 'odd-even' plan, order cars off roads, and shut schools if needed. "We are welcoming this step by the government and this will help to make the air quality better," said Bhure Lal, the Chairperson of EPCA. Other greenbodies of the Capital have also welcomed the proposal.

GRAP was notified by the Centre in January this year following an order by the apex court in November 2016.

According to Gahlot, procurement of additional buses by DTC would be the "main component" of readiness if the odd-even scheme is implemented. "We have received the letter and started working according to the proposal," said a senior DTC official.

A significant challenge in implementing the scheme is inadequate public transport facilities, despite a well developed Delhi Metro network.

The DTC has a fleet of around 4,000 buses, while the Delhi Integrated Multimodal Transit System (DIMTS) runs over 1,600 buses under the cluster scheme. Experts estimate that the city needs about 11,000 buses to cover all areas.