[arin_12]

"We've decided not to run commercial vehicles more than 15 years old in the Kolkata Metropolitan Area from Aug 1," said Swarnakamal Saha of the Kolkata Metropolitian Bus and Mini Bus Owners Association.

"We'll only withdraw 15-year old commercial vehicles but other vehicles will ply," he said.
Meanwhile, transport department sources said the government was ready to ban vehicles over 15 years old from Aug 1.

"Transport department officials, police and motor vehicles department officers will carry out the operations all across Kolkata Metropolitan Area to ban these old vehicles. We have also decided to run commercial vehicles through government franchise if the operators decide to go on strike," said Sumantra Chowdhury, principal secretary of the state transport department.

The Calcutta High Court in July 2008 ordered a ban on commercial vehicles registered before Jan 1, 1993 from Kolkata and its outskirts. It said the order should be implemented by Dec 31, 2008 in the Kolkata Metropolitan Area, which includes parts of North and South 24-Parganas, Howrah and Hooghly districts.

Later, the date for imposing the ban was put off till July 31, 2009, following a government plea. The government decided to phase out old vehicles from July 25 to implement the court order.

[Parm]

Land of the communists in India called West Bengal!

only their govt is to be blamed for leaving behind the state!

atleast the govt had to courage to ban the 15 yo vehicles!

[drraj]

This is a very nice move by by West Bengal Government...
Although there are wide spread protests going on against this; it would definitely reduce pollution in the city a lot...

[AbhiJ]

Waiting and hoping for a successful implementation..

[1100D]

Of the recent cab rides, I remember 2 specific rides which were of quite some contrasting nature. The first one was a 6 year old ramshackle Ambassador, which was feeling like the floor will give up, hence I had to get down from it due to safety considerations. The second was a 1985 Ambassador Mark 4 Diesel, with all original components and in perfect working order, I paid the cabbie a lot more money than what the meter had indicated. I asked the owner/driver about PUC and he challanged me to take it to any PUC center and he was confident his vehicle will pass. I later divulged to him that I drive a 40 yr old car which can also lay similar claims hence I beleive him.

However, the former will remain on the streets, the later will have to go.

[aaggoswami]

This is a meaningless decision specially in India. Its matter of how well or ill maintained the vehicle is. I have seen that certain cars are so badly maintained that after just 5 years or even before that, they are not at all usable. Be it in emission or state of the entire body. Badly abused and rarely maintained. I dont know if trucks are included in this or not, but within an year or two they become polluting.

How can government stop that ? Also I have seen many private cars in worse shape than cabs. They will remain on the road. Also what about those Autos ? Aren't they polluting in a couple of years and yet nothing happens as most of them belong to policemen ( in my city atleast ).

These type of laws are hopeless. Rather than targeting the core issue, we have blind laws.

[johy]

Originally Posted by 1100D

Of the recent cab rides, I remember 2 specific rides which were of quite some contrasting nature. The first one was a 6 year old ramshackle Ambassador, which was feeling like the floor will give up, hence I had to get down from it due to safety considerations. The second was a 1985 Ambassador Mark 4 Diesel, with all original components and in perfect working order, I paid the cabbie a lot more money than what the meter had indicated. I asked the owner/driver about PUC and he challanged me to take it to any PUC center and he was confident his vehicle will pass. I later divulged to him that I drive a 40 yr old car which can also lay similar claims hence I beleive him.

However, the former will remain on the streets, the later will have to go.

That is the irony of it. With the rut and corruption they are in, the authorities know they can't possibly enforce and monitor pollution check centers and the issue of the pollution certificates and hence this.

The Telegraph was doing a number of stories on Katatel (a toxic mixture of petrol, kerosene and naphtha) and how it was bad and even carcinogenic. Even the less-than-15-year-old vehicles are using them each day. Why is the Govt not stopping the sale of this? I think it causes more harm than the 15-year-old commercial vehicles.

Links.

Article Window

The Telegraph - Calcutta (Kolkata) | Metro | Katatel sold in the open

The Telegraph - Calcutta (Kolkata) | Metro | Subhas oils an old promise



The Telegraph - Calcutta (Kolkata) | Metro | Law run over by three wheels Over 50% vehicles have no permits

The Telegraph - Calcutta (Kolkata) | Metro | Free flow of banned <I>katatel</I>

[anjan_c2007]

That may be a good directive from the courts to ban 15 year old plus commercial vehicles in W.B.. There are many anomalies like maybe older cabs and buses being maintained very well and newer ones not being so.But there needs to be some thinking at the policy making levels to annihilate older polluting commercial motor vehicles. The practice has worked very well in Delhi where CNG power and newer commercial vehicles have reduced pollution levels to the minimum. About a decade back, at any traffic junction stranded motor vehicles used to emit pollutants that would nauseate us but that is not the fact now. Even Mumbai is much better now, with the CNG powered taxis, though I would refrain from commenting on their safety aspects.
West Bengal has to adopt some law to reduce pollution.We simply do not know how the implementation goes about due to the very different socio-economic and political compulsions prevalent in Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata.

Beginning of its innings


Playing their innings


End of its innings

[arin_12]

Originally Posted by AbhiJ

Waiting and hoping for a successful implementation..

I believe this be implemented in the City. Hope all the other city too follow the same thing.

Originally Posted by drraj

This is a very nice move by by West Bengal Government...
Although there are wide spread protests going on against this; it would definitely reduce pollution in the city a lot...

As I know Kolkata has many more restriction like this which many other city does not have yet.
- Cracker sound/loudness restriction
- Mike loudness control during puja. Even in masque they have implemented.
- Moved many Industry from Howrah Residential place to outside.
- Vehicle horn control. (Still remember my friend's bike horn was pulled out by a cop as it was a highly decible musical horn)

[AyAn!]

Originally Posted by arin_12

I believe this be implemented in the City. Hope all the other city too follow the same thing.



As I know Kolkata has many more restriction like this which many other city does not have yet.
- Cracker sound/loudness restriction
- Mike loudness control during puja. Even in masque they have implemented.
- Moved many Industry from Howrah Residential place to outside.
- Vehicle horn control. (Still remember my friend's bike horn was pulled out by a cop as it was a highly decible musical horn)

Many laws have been made and amended,but very rarely successfully implemented.In kolkata you also get pulled over by the cops if riding without a helmet or without seat-belts.
But this hurried move of phasing out 15+ yr commercial vehicles is just a ploy by the government to regain its lost feet.Though I sponsor this move,it should have been done in a slow,systematic manner,without protests and all.Today there was not a single auto plying in the whole city,except in Salt Lake(which by the way is under South 24Parganas)

[ACM]

Finally..

Actually if only if they could keep a a strict quality check on the maintenance of the vehicles and not accept bribes while passing vehicles that too would do. The well maintained older vehicles would now unnecessarily have to go as well.