Auto Industry Expresses Reservation on Delhi Car Ban

Following Delhi High Court’s observation on pollution which compared living in the Union territory to “living in a gas chamber”, Delhi Government has announced a “selective” ban on private cars. According to the announcement, cars with odd and even numbers will be allowed to run only on alternate days to control pollution. With the implementation of this new rule, people having a single car will be affected the most. Even the auto industry is at odds with the Delhi government. Expressing his disapproval, R C Bhargava, Chairman of Maruti Suzuki said, "I am not sure, if Delhi administration understands the full logic, once they understand it, they may change the decision. Because cars become symbol of luxury or rich man's product, it is one of the easiest to ban, because of its greater appeal." He elaborated that the Delhi government needs to first look at who is polluting. The major pollution in Delhi is the particulate matter 2.5 PM and there is virtually no emission from petrol cars. He added  there are lots of other sources of pollution like -- construction activity, waste disposal and burning of waste from Punjab and Haryana, Desert storm from Rajasthan, diesel trucks passing through Delhi etc.

"The fact is pollution created by bio mass, construction activity, Diwali crackers, farmers burning field and dust coming from the desert are major contributors. All this pollution tend to get trapped in the lower stratosphere due to adverse weather condition in the winter between September to December," said Vishnu Mathur, Secretary General of the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers Association (SIAM). Referring a report released by Ministry of Environment and Forest, in 2011, only 8% of pollution was contributed by vehicles, this may have grown marginally by now, said Mathur. "I fear, controlling the number of vehicles on road may not improve the air-quality, which is the primary objective, this has to be thought through in a holistic manner," he added.

"Auto industry alone is not responsible for pollution. Containing pollution in city like Delhi is for sure a dire need, but there has to be holistic approach keeping in mind interests of public and industry at large. Decisions can't be taken overnight and changed overnight, there has to be a road map. Consumer paid taxes on their vehicle to government to ply on roads not to be parked at homes," said Gaurav Vangaal, Senior analyst for forecasting at IHS Automotive. "Implementation of the Government directive would be a big challenge as it would need full cooperation of public supported by well organised public transport system offering safety, convenience & comfort to motivate people to use it," said Rakesh Srivastava, Senior VP, sales and marketing at Hyundai Motor India expressing reservation on the ban.

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