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Odd even formula in Delhi: Delhi will soon ban private cars from its roads on alternate days, according to their registration numbers, in an attempt to improve air quality in the world's most polluted city. In a radical step to curb air pollution that has assumed "critical" level, Aam Aadmi Party led Delhi gov today announced that private vehicles bearing odd and even registration numbers will be allowed to ply only on alternate days starting January 1, which drew mixed reactions.<br>Image Caption: Traffic jam on Delhi-Gurgaon expressway, in Gurgaon (Express Photo by Manoj Kumar)</br>
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Odd even formula in Delhi: In an emergency meeting chaired by Chief Minister Arvind Kerjriwal, a day after the High Court compared Delhi to a "gas chamber", the government also decided a series of steps to cut pollution which included shutting down of a thermal power plant and making it mandatory for vehicles to have Euro VI emission norms from 2017. <br>Image Caption: 5 year old Piyush wears a mask as he waits for a transport to Delhi Cantonment area with his mother Munni at Sarai Kale Khan on Friday night. (Express photo by Oinam Anand)</br>
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5. Women drivers likely to be exempted from odd-even scheme: The Delhi government is likely to give exemption to women drivers under the second round of odd-even scheme starting from April 15. Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) Swati Maliwal has also urged Transport Minister Gopal Rai to exempt women from the road-rationing scheme as the city's public transport is not in a good shape and safety for working women is also a issue of concern. Rai today held consultation with different women organisations where most participants raised their voices in favour of keeping women drivers out of the ambit of the scheme. (Express photo)
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Odd even formula in Delhi: Announcing the decision, Chief Secretary K K Sharma said emergency services like ambulances and public transport will not be under the ambit of the restriction. In its reaction, Congress described the move as "anti-people" while BJP, adopting a cautious approach, said it supported measures to curb pollution but wondered if the step was practical. Environmentalists welcomed the decision. (PTI)
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Odd even formula in Delhi: "We welcome any step to curb pollution but it should be practical," Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said, adding that it should not happen that such a measure is rejected outright. Congress general secretary and spokesperson Shakeel Ahmad said that Arvind Kejriwal government's decision was aimed at cheap publicity and will harass the common man. (AP)
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Odd even formula in Delhi: However, the move got a near unanimous welcome from green experts, most of whom stressed that the situation called for "drastic measures". Environmentalist Sunita Narain supported the move, saying pollution in Delhi was at a health emergency level and such steps were needed. Director General of Centre for Science and Environment Sunita Narain said it will have implementation challenges but was imperative as the city's air pollution has reached the level of "public emergency". <br>Image Caption: Traffic jam on Delhi-Gurgaon expressway, in Gurgaon (Express Photo by Manoj Kumar)</br>
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Odd even formula in Delhi: Chief Project Scientist of the Centre's System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR) Gufran Beig said it would lead to a reduction in Vehicle kilometres travelled (VKT). It is an aggregate estimate of the distance travelled by vehicles and the principle unit of measurement to assess road traffic volume. Anumita Roychowdhury of CSE, who has been working on ways and means to mitigate pollution in Delhi, said people should welcome the move as it was time to put an end to "chest beating and complaining" to measures on the ground. (AP)
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Odd even formula in Delhi: The Kejriwal government has been focusing on improving public transport and introduced "car free day" in select areas. The government has announced that it will organise 'Car-Free Day' across the national capital on January 22. (AP)
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Odd even formula in Delhi: A bench of justices Badar Durrez Ahmed and Sanjeev Sachdeva termed the action plans filed by the environment ministry and Delhi government as "not comprehensive" as they did not contain specific responsibilities of each authority and the timeline for carrying them out. It directed them to file comprehensive action plans, which are the need of the hour, by December 21. Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar yesterday had said air quality in Delhi has been going from bad to worse and the situation was "serious", claiming the government has prepared a one-year plan to improve it. (PTI)
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Odd even formula in Delhi: Anumita Roychowdhury of CSE, who has been working on ways and means to mitigate pollution in Delhi, said people should welcome the move as it was time to put an end to "chest beating and complaining" to measures on the ground. "Similar initiatives have worked in places such as Beijing and Mexico city which have also been grappling with high levels of pollution. Some other cities like London and Stockholm have gone for congestion pricing and Hong Kong for parking restrictions," she said. (PTI)
US announces new rules for selection of H-1B visa for foreign workers
