To tide over the shortage of three-wheeler scooter rickshaws (TSRs), the Delhi Government has decided to approach the Supreme Court to remove the limit on the number of TSR permits which can been issued in the Capital.
Delhi Transport Minister Ramakant Goswami said on Tuesday that the Government wants to bring more auto-rickshaws on the roads as they provide a reasonably priced and convenient public transport to the masses.
He said while the commuters have been experiencing shortage of auto-rickshaws, the Transport Department has been receiving representations from the public to grant more permits of TSR in order to cater to the rise in the number of commuters.
At many places, he said, it was common to see people waiting for a long time for an auto-rickshaw to turn up.
Mr. Goswami said when there is no restriction on registration of other type of vehicles, the Government would appeal to the Supreme Court to remove the cap from the registration of TSRs in Delhi. Further, he said, no such restriction exists in most cities of the country.
The Department, the Minister said, also believes that with the grant of permits for more TSR, the usage of private vehicles would also reduce and there would also be a reduction in the pollution levels as TSRs are propelled by CNG, which is a clean fuel.
Additional permits
Mr. Goswami said the Supreme Court had allowed permission to grant additional 45,000 permits out of which 3,000 were kept unallocated.
The Department has since decided to grant permit in respect of unallocated share of TSR in earlier determined proportion. The permits would be exclusively released to those TSR buyers who have already bought the vehicles but could not get registered due to delay in logistics.
The Transport Department, he said, has also decided to take strict action against the TSR dealers who have sold their vehicles without caring about the non-availability of quota. “As sufficient number of permits are available in the reserved category and number of takers are very less, the Department has decided to give sufficient publicity through leading newspapers to invite them to avail the quota provided to them.’’
Mr. Goswami expressed hope that these steps would help in overcoming the shortage of TSRs in Delhi.
