It turned out to be an ordeal for some and a boon for others, but the fortnight-long odd-even experiment in Delhi to restrict the number of cars on the road by their registration numbers has left a debate raging in its wake.
Was the move actually successful in lowering air pollution or was it mere optics orchestrated to make sure the ruling Aam Aadmi Party government come across as being proactive in tackling the capital's air pollution and traffic congestion?
Regardless of its effectiveness in controlling pollution, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal seems to at least have succeeded in making the subject headline-worthy and enabling a real conversation among various stake-holders.
Even as experts pore over pollution data collected during the period to judge how effective the odd-even experiment was in curbing pollution in the city, the move has already begun to be replicated around different places in the country.
While Delhi government plans to bring back odd-even (reportedly with more restrictions and less exemptions), here’s how other cities have responded.
Ahmadabad’s 20-20
Bharatiya Janata Party may be a fierce political opponent to AAP in Delhi, but its civic body in Ahmedabad is adopting a variation of the odd-even policy in Delhi by planning to restrict 20% of the vehicles off the road on each day of the week. The policy will bar vehicles with their registration numbers ending in a specific number to be banned on a certain day of the week.
With a move to reduce congestion as well as pollution in the city, the civic body will seek to implement the move in the next three to six months, but it has already started penalising vehicles wrongly parked on the roads or occupying space designated for pedestrians.
“The corporation has procured 350 locks, which we have started putting on illegally parked vehicles. This will be increased to 10,000 locks in the next one month,” Deputy Municipal Commissioner, Administration, K L Bachani told the Indian Express.
Rohtak’s odd beginning
Taking a cue from Delhi, city authorities in Haryana’s Rohtak decided to implement a version of odd-even policy in the city to tackle congestion as well as pollution in the city. However, the policy is limited to auto-rickshaws in the city and will only kick in once a week on Mondays, leaving many wondering about the potential impact of such a narrow restriction.
The authorities, meanwhile, insist that Monday, being a “heavy-day” due to reopening of schools and offices after the weekend is a suitable day to target, and that the days can always be changed in future.
“This duration can increase or decrease keeping in view the response of locals,” Rohtak SP Shashank Anand told the Times of India. “Since Monday happens to be the heavy day in the wake of reopening of schools, government offices and organisations after the week ends, hence we decided to choose Monday for implementation.”
Noida alters its schedule
Uttar Pradesh’s Noida has decided to act on rising vehicular population in the city with a rather unprecedented move. The city authorities decided to alter the timings and holidays of businesses, factories and even schools in Noida, Greater Noida and nearby areas to control pollution from peaking during a certain time of the day.
“For instance, sectors 10, 62, 64, 87 will have a holiday on Saturday while another area comprising sectors 1, 3, 15, 16, 57,68, 80, 90, Baroli, Nithari, Morana will have their weekly holiday on Monday,” reported the Indian Express.
Similarly, factory and school timings were also tweaked in order to not coincide with neighbouring Delhi’s peak hours to reduce congestion. To back their move, authorities claim that they conducted a study which showed that the vehicular congestion will come down by about 20% after the move, leading the pollution to come down by a substantial 30-40%.
Recent reports, however, suggest that businesses and residents are suffering due to the problems caused by the policy and it may therefore have to be discontinued.
More are joining in
The odd-even effect is not limited to just these cities. A survey suggests that one in two residents in Delhi’s neighbouring Gurgaon want odd-even policy to be implemented, Kolkata has doubled the number of pollution monitors present in the city and Dhanbad residents recently took to the streets in a demonstration against worsening air quality due to the coalfields nearby.
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