Much To the Consternation of the Owners
The Law is clear, 10 and 15-yr old cars cannot ply on Delhi NCR roads and are now being forcefully lifted from the homes of owners. This is an apt lesson for citizens, who do not keep a
close watch on what their Elected Representatives and the Tax Gobbling Babudom do to safeguard their interests. Had the citizens raised their voices in support of Activists who went knocking multiple doors with empirical evidence that cars are not the main culprit in polluting Delhi’s environment, least of all domestic EU compliant vehicles.
It is evident even to a street urchin that the condition of a car and milage clocked, determines pollution and not the age of a car. A 3 year old commercial taxi clocking 2 lakh kms pollutes manifold more than a 15 year old vehicle, that has done 60 thousand kms owned by a retired senior citizen.
BUT NO, Vehicle Manufacture Lobby would have the Powers-That-Be believe that cars contribute almost 30% to pollution through dubious studies and unverified Data. Greed of Vehicle manufacturers that wanted to kill 2nd hand car industry and increase their sales was the sole motive. Once they got the desired court orders, other pollutants have found their way into mainstream chatter. How come in the past 3 years, with most of the old vehicles out of circulation and Easter/Western Peripheral Expressway operational, we still have dangerous AQI’s?
Even now for the past 2 months, teams of Transport Department under Police Protection and 5-7 Tow-Trucks have been moving around affluent colonies towing away perfectly road worthy cars. Even here the honest citizen is short-changed, the Transport Department has entered into an agreement with Scrap Dealers who pay car owners Rs.22/- per kg irrespective of the car make or model. Current price of iron is Rs. 50-60 per kg, you do the math how much the Scrap dealer makes when he dismantles the car and accessories piece by piece???
by Rajiv Kakria – 9810275168
