Will Scrapping Old Vehicles Help Improve Pune’s Traffic And Air Quality?

By
Loveleen Kaur
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Car scrapping
Image used for representation only

 

Uncontrolled vehicular pollution, traffic and road safety are burning issues for the city and the constant rise in numbers of new vehicles is only making it worse…

Looking at the deteriorating condition of Indian streets, an official of the International Road Federation suggested that the Indian government should roll out an appropriate vehicle scrappage policy at the earliest in the interest of road safety.

“Once the useful life of the vehicle is completed then it should be scrapped.

And this should be done as a part of policy so that these vehicles do not occupy the space unnecessarily and create congestion,” the official said.

The National Green Tribunal (NGT) however in its 2015 order had banned petrol vehicles older than 15 years and diesel vehicles older than a decade in the national capital region (NCR). It had also banned the parking of 15-year-old vehicles in any public area, reports suggested.

Following a meeting held last year, centre intends to accelerate its compulsory vehicle scrapping policy for commercial vehicles up to 20 years old, bringing it into effect from 2020.

It was also notified that after receiving approval from the cabinet, vehicle owners will be able to receive a discount on the purchase of a new one against the scrapped one.

“While what seems to be a complex mechanism to put in place, reducing the number of worn-out vehicles by adopting the centre’s automobile scrapping policy could be a possible alternative,” quotes a city-based automobile dealer, Shakil.

“Achieving a vehicle to driver ratio is only possible if we keep reducing the number of vehicles plying on the roads. Pune has today more vehicles population than human population.

How are we going to tackle the rampant rise in vehicles if we don’t intend reducing the numbers?  

Moreover, it will also help keep the vehicular pollution in check by reducing the high polluting old vehicles,” he adds.

However, Ranjit Gadgil– Program Director – Parisar- a civil society organization, feels that vehicle scrapping policies are typically promoted by the automobile industry to increase vehicle sales.

“Older vehicles often do not run as much as newer vehicles and so the problem of pollution from them may be overstated.

The same automobile industry which promotes scrapping policies in the name of road safety has been resisting every other road safety measure in new cars.

“It would be better to ban diesel cars and put speed governors on cars to reduce pollution and improve road safety.

So, we are certainly not in favour of scrapping policy unless the Government backs it up with credible data on the benefits,” adds Gadgil.

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Loveleen Kaur
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