Nalinir’s Weblog

The last time i had been to the Jama Masjid in the Old Delhi area which was in June 2006, I was particularly charmed by the uniqueness of the area. The chaos and identity of that zone is irreplaceable. The clutter of zillion shops lined like a stack of irregularly shaped cards, some of them frying hot chole bhatures , pakodas and what not , the others offering  numerous utilitarian services and etc, the narrow lanes which try hard to accomodate both the cycle rickshaws and the numerous pedestrians, etc.
The ubiquitous and non-polluting rickshaws have been plying in the Chandini Chowk area in Old Delhi since decades. Chandini Chowk breathes of rickshaws. But on September 6, 2007when the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) informed the Delhi High Court that there would be a complete ban on cycle rickshaws in Chandni Chowk from September, it was the final call for the rickshaw pullers. It was issued following the court’s earlier order on a ban on cycle rickshaws in the heavily congested Chandini Chowk. According to it, all the arterial roads of Delhiin MCD area need to be strictly prohibited for the plying of cycle rickshaws on the pattern of NDMC and strict legal action should be taken by MCD under municipal bye- laws against the violators. There are also plans to introduce CNG minibuses in the Chandini Chowk area.  
There are 8,000 cycle rickshaws registered in the city zone. Nearly 50,000 unlicensed rickshaws ply in Delhi. About 15,000-20,000 rickshaws, both licensed and unlicensed ones, ply in Chandini Chowk and adjoining areas.An estimate says that there are more than 6 lakh passenger rickshaws and 4 lack goods rickshaws plying in Delhi.
Studies show that cycle rickshaws save 10 crore motorised trips every day in Indiaand more than 1 crore trips in Delhi alone. The pollution levels and the public health impact of replacing such a huge number of non motorised trips with motorised trips are yet to be calculated.
On the other hand, a study by the Central Road Research Institute (CRRI) had found that cycle rickshaws are the major cause of congestion in Chandini Chowk and waiting or parked cycle rickshaws block the carriageway and obstruct the traffic flow. The plan suggested that CNG buses can take the place of cycle rickshaws. Should we try to preserve the rickshaws just because they are a symbol of our tradition? Or should the roads be widened to accommodate the needs for a larger means of transport like buses and autos? The growing urban landscape has to answer these vital questions to tackle this problem.
But the issue is can the rails and the buses enter the narrow lanes of Chandini Chowk? Where only rickshaws can enter? This particular policy shows the city attitude of giving more importance to motor transport and road building than preserving old and sustainable forms of transport like rickshaws. The proper solution could have been regulating the number of rickshaws than imposing a complete ban on them.
Today, when cities are turning into gas chambers where one only breathes polluted air, intermediate transport systems like rickshaws need to be encouraged. Today the ubiquitous rickshaws which are an immense comfort to the commuters appear as an eyesore to the administration. Instead of completely banning them, a mid way could be achieved.
Every city has its own identity which has to be preserved. By making the city look orderly and structured, the administration is taking away the city characteristic of chaos and a unique look. Rickshaws have the right to their own traditional driving space. They have to be provided with the right infrastructure which supports them in the heavy traffic scenario.
When on one hand we talk of greenery and the need to have a non motorized transport, on the other we completely ban the rickshaws. We are banning them under a colonial hangover, but the colonial masters have taken up the tradition of plying rickshaws and are encouraging them. The poor rickshaws pullers have been deprived of their livelihood. Many of them don’t know any other alternate occupation and some of them are old enough to switch to another occupation. Moreover, for the numerous many, it is all about going to the villages and pursues agriculture. Instead the government could work on making the rickshaws easy to pull with new technology making it part of the solution and not the problem. They could rather be upgraded and used for short term commutation. Lanes could be structured for their transportation to avoid the traffic mess. A study conducted by the USAID along with US EPA in the late nineties on the feasibility of a cycle rickshaw upgrading project in Agra, has indicated that “Human powered transport is a wave of the future and not a vestige of past.”
 The solution lies in accepting cycle rickshaws as part of the solution and not that of the problem.