Odd-even may be enforced for a fortnight every month in Delhi
The Delhi government is seriously considering implementing the odd-even plan for 15 days every month. Chief Minister of Delhi Arvind Kejriwal said this at a press meet called on Saturday to announce the next phase of odd-even from April 15. Flagging Round Two for a fortnight, he said it would not be possible to make the plan permanent till the public transport system was made robust, which may take over a year. While the CM argued that people would face a problem only for four-five days each month if the government went ahead, such a decision could impact public opinion adversely. Without public transport being augmented and other measures to bring down pollution -which was the original objective -it may end up inconveniencing commuters. They will have to move around their schedules and the scheme could boomerang. For now, the second phase of the plan will take off for 15 days from April 15, 8am to 8pm daily. It won’t be enforced on Sundays. All exemptions that were in force the last time round are being repeated, besides schoolchildren being kept out of the ambit this time. However, as the government has not been able to come up with a solution for parents -read men because women are exempt -going to pick up children from school in the afternoon, it has asked them to either carpool or look for alternatives. The assumption is that children will be dropped well before 8am and hence the morning hours don’t pose a problem.