Transport minister says odd-even formula successful on second day

Terming the second day of the implementation of the traffic rationing, Delhi transport minister Gopal Rai said on Saturday he noticed “a new, collective consciousness” among the residents to contribute to efforts for lowering air pollution.

Terming the second day of the implementation of the traffic rationing, Delhi transport minister Gopal Rai said on Saturday he noticed “a new, collective consciousness” among the residents to contribute to efforts for lowering air pollution.

Delhi transport minister Gopal Rai travels in a DTC bus on Friday. (Sushil Kumar/HT Photo)

“Mere rules cannot change anything, change of mindset is needed which we aimed at through implementation of odd-even formula. Two days’ trials show that people of Delhi are ready for it,” Rai said.

The minister said that the government had prepared for implementation of the scheme on the first day now it is the “responsibility” of the people to ensure that violations do not take place even on Monday.

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Regarding questions over Delhi government’s preparations to ensure proper implementation of the formula on Monday when vehicular traffic and number of commuters is likely to significantly go up, he said that people of Delhi are ready to follow the rule.

Rebutting charges of the BJP and Congress that the odd-even formula was launched without adequate preparations, Rai said they were opposing the scheme just for the “sake of opposition”.

“Yesterday (on Friday) while heading towards the India gate, I stopped in front of the BJP office and found that there was only one vehicle that violated odd-even formula,” he said.

“There cannot be any division over the need to fight pollution to clean the air we breathe,” he said.

Rai, who took a bus ride to take stock of the situation on the roads, said: “Only odd-numbered cars were seen on the road yesterday (Friday) while today (Saturday) only even-numbered cars are visible”.

The minister’s bus ride started from Delhi Secretariat passed through Indraprastha, Nizammudin, Saray Kale Khan, Ashram, Nehru Place, India Gate, finally concluding at the starting point.