Pollution: Delhi govt to hire 1,000 buses to augment DTC fleet

Transport minister Kailash Gahlot held a meeting on Tuesday with private transporters to get them on board with the plan which is part of the government’s efforts to tackle vehicular pollution

The Delhi government will hire 1,000 private buses to augment the public transport fleet and curtail the use of private vehicles so as to reduce vehicular pollution and improve the city’s air quality, which has remained “very poor” or “hazardous” since Diwali (November 4).

Gahlot also announced that owing to the improved Covid-19 situation and to control pollution from private vehicles, the government has moved a proposal before DDMA to allow standing passengers on buses and the Delhi Metro. (HT)

Transport minister Kailash Gahlot held a meeting on Tuesday with private transporters to get them on board with the plan. “In order to curb vehicular pollution, the people of Delhi are requested to shift from personal vehicles to public transport. With a view to augment public transport, the Delhi government is in the process of hiring around 1,000 private buses for a period of one month,” he said after the meeting.

The air quality in Delhi went back to the severe zone after remaining in the very poor zone for two days. According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) recordings, the average air quality index of Delhi on Tuesday was 403, in the severe zone. On Monday, the AQI was 353, categorised as very poor.

According to the affidavit submitted by the Centre before the Supreme Court on Monday, 28% of the city’s PM2.5 levels during winters is contributed by the transport sector in Delhi. The contribution of vehicles to the PM10 level is around 24%, the affidavit said. Delhi has more than 10 million registered vehicles and thousands more enter or pass through the national capital every day. Compared to that, the city has only about 6,700 buses (Delhi Transport Corporation-run buses and privately operated orange cluster buses). PM10 is particulate matter with a diameter of 10 micrometers or less and is inhalable into the lungs. PM2.5 is finer particles which can even enter the bloodstream, according to health experts.

Gahlot also announced that owing to the improved Covid-19 situation and to control pollution from private vehicles, the government has moved a proposal before the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) to allow standing passengers on buses and the Delhi Metro. “We have requested the DDMA to modify the current order prohibiting the same. I request all Delhi residents to cooperate and shift to public transport,” he said.

When allowed to operate at full capacity, including standing passengers, the DTC and cluster buses together carry about 4.2 million people every day, while the Delhi Metro carries about 2.3 million passengers, government officials in the know of the matter said.

The Delhi government has hired private buses in the past as well, to augment public transport during the odd-even car rationing scheme in November 2019 to combat pollution. That time, the government set a target of hiring 2,000 such buses which were a mix of school buses and all-india permit tourist buses. However, even then, it could hire only about 1,000 buses.