E-Paper
2,768 people fined during five days of odd-even rule
New Delhi: On the fifth day of the odd-even road rationing plan, as many as 532 people were prosecuted for violation of the scheme, taking the total number of prosecutions
New Delhi: On the fifth day of the odd-even road rationing plan, as many as 532 people were prosecuted for violation of the scheme, taking the total number of prosecutions over the past five days to 2,768.
As many as 271 individuals were penalised for violating the scheme on November 4, the first day of the road space rationing scheme.
The government had said that it was lenient on commuters on the first day. The next two days witnessed a gradual increase in the number of people fined – 562 on Day 2 and 709 Day 3. Thursday, the fourth day, however, witnessed a dip, with the total number of fines issued numbering 694, government records showed.
Under the odd-even scheme, private cars with registration numbers ending in even digits are allowed to ply on even dates of the calendar and those ending in odd digits are allowed on odd dates, between 8am and 8pm from Monday to Saturday. Cars driven by women and those ferrying children in school uniforms are exempted.
Violation of the scheme can attract a penalty of ₹4,000. The enforcement is done by both the traffic police and the city transport department.
The third edition of the scheme was implemented in Delhi on November 14 and it will continue till November 15.
On Friday, chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said the scheme will not be enforced on November 11 and 12 to ensure hassle-free commute on the occasion of the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev.
That means, next week, the scheme will be enforced only on three days – November 13, 14 and 15. Private cars with registration numbers ending in even digits will face restrictions on two days, while those ending in odd digits will have just one more day of restriction.
Although the odd-even scheme is an emergency measure to tackle air pollution, as listed under the graded action response plan formulated by a Supreme Court-appointed Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) Authority, the third edition of the scheme was announced in Delhi as a proactive step by the city government to keep the city’s air quality from nosediving. However, by the time it was implemented, the air quality had entered the severe zone.
