EPCA pinpoints 7 stretches that worsen pollution in city
CONCERNS RAISED Agencies given list of measures to implement, told to expedite measures to decongest roads
NEWDELHI: The Supreme Court-appointed panel on air pollution identified seven major stretches across Delhi that are perennially congested contributing to high air pollution levels in the neighbourhoods.
Most of the stretches identified by the Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) Authority (EPCA) are located on key roads that carry heavy volume of commercial and private vehicles. The stretches include Sarai Rohilla-anand Parbat T-point (Rohtak Road), ZakhiraNajafgarh Road, Udyog Nagar, Peeragarhi Chowk (below Nangloi flyover), Azadpur Mandi, Tirkri border and Sohan Park (Mundka).
Experts say the vehicular and dust emissions that originate from these congested roads have been a major issue for years.
A meeting on the issue was held under EPCA with lieutenant-governor Anil Baijal in December 2018 where the Sc-appointed panel said emissions caused by jams in these areas worsened air pollution.
In December 2018, the Delhi Traffic Police had prepared a plan to fix these congestion ‘hotspots’. A number of issues including improving road conditions, removal of encroachment, regulating unauthorised parking, creating parking space and better pedestrian facilities are yet to be addressed, EPCA observed.
“During a recent inspection, we found huge violations of traffic norms as well as encroachments obstructing the flow of traffic. For instance, in case of Peeragarhi Chowk, it is notorious for unruly traffic movement, motorists are seen blatantly violating norms,” said Bhure Lal, EPCA chairperson.
When HT visited the spots, we
Commercial, industrial activities along the road
Stretch has 4 bus stops, 4 metro stations, one signal Road in poor condition Service road dilapidated
Repair of service road Constructing iron grilles on divider, speed-calmers Stretch sees constant jams
Poor condition of roads Heavy vehicle volume No mechanism for sewage flow along the road
Divider not fenced, unruly pedestrian movement
carpeting of road Opening of a cut from Mundka on Rohtak Road Ring Road Outer Ring Road Rise of unauthorised slums, unauthorised parking
Drain creates a bottleneck A religious structure halves space on carriageway Heavy pedestrian volume Road has banquet halls with illegally parked cars
Widening of the bridge Shifting religious structure Slow traffic movement
found clouds of dust created by heavy traffic at a number of unpaved stretches as construction and demolition waste was seen dumped openly at several sites. Most footpaths were encroached upon by vendors and small kiosks. Banquets and wedding avenues, which have come up on the main road, were seen operating without adequate parking space.
While some busy junctions had vehicles coming from the wrong side, traffic personnel were largely not present at most of these locations. At other places, state-run buses could be seen stopping and picking passengers beyond or before the designated bus stops, further slowing down traffic.
In case of Azadpur Mandi, where heavy truck movement is visible nearly 24 hours a day, the flow of traffic was further disrupted with push-carts, horsecarts and battery-rickshaws clog- ging the already congested road.
“Around 70 acres of land has already been provided at Tikri to be redeveloped into a market as well as a parking for trucks so that the rush at Azadpur market is reduced. However, the land is lying unutilised. Emissions from trucks lined up for hours every day are a huge source of particulate matter, which fouls up the air,” said Lal.
A senior traffic official, who did not wish to be identified, said,
Commercial activities at Zakhira, Anand Parbat Industrial units
Goods vehicles taking U-turns at Anand Parbat area
High volume of traffic and pedestrian movement
Iron grilles on the divider Halting sewage overflow
“There is sufficient deployment at busy intersections and erring vehicles are regularly prosecuted. Most of these identified stretches need road repair work as well removal of encroachment, which reduces road space. This also lets heavy flow of traffic pile up during peak hours.”
When asked, officials from the North Delhi Municipal Corporation said, they take up encroachment removal drives regularly on these stretches.
Traffic congestion along all three sides of the intersection
Heavy vehicle volume Road needs redesign, unable to carry vehicle load
Road engineering solutions to decongest the stretch