Of 300 cars booked for pollution, 200 belonged to government

Three hundred cars were booked for not meeting norms during a pollution awareness drive by the Transport Department on Tuesday. Of these, 200 were government registered vehicles.

Narendra Holkar, Joint Commissioner (Enforcement), Transport Department, said that emission tests have to be done every six months. He said, “The High Court is observing the position (of polluting vehicles) very seriously.”

However, M. N Venugopal, President, State Government and Government Concerns Drivers Federations, said that the problem was due to vehicles that are used in government offices but are outsourced and not owned by the government. He said he has been requesting both State and Central governments to ensure that government offices do not employ outsourced cars.

However, Mr. Holkar said, “The 200 vehicles are owned by the government and not outsourced ones.”

A driver of a government car said that government cars get more attention from the public and they must carry all documents. “If documents are missing, it reflects poorly on the officials to whom the car has been allotted,” he added.