Wishing you a Green & Non Polluted Delhi : B S Vohra

#OddEveninDelhi

It will create problems for the residents for 15 days, but still, we must give it a thought, for the sake of our Children. Let's see if this exercise has any impact on the pollution in Delhi. 

Trifurcation of MCD led to its downfall claim residents

Sneha Agrawal

New Delhi, December 29, 2015 

The trifurcation, which was aimed at improving the efficiency of the civic body at micro level, today is drawing flak from the residents due to the failure in delivering results. The residents say that move was made to reap political advantage rather than administrative benefits.

Dividing the erstwhile corporation into three led to further downfall in the functioning of the civic body, say the residents' welfare associations. The trifurcation, which was aimed at improving the efficiency of the civic body at micro level, today is drawing flak from the residents due to the failure in delivering results. The residents say that move was made to reap political advantage rather than administrative benefits.

"The trifurcation complicated the functioning of the MCD. While there has been no change in the quality of the service on the ground, the administration has gone from bad to worse. The move had political benefits but from the view point of administration, it has failed miserably. After the staff was doubled up, there has not been any social audit on the fact that whether the decision to trifurcate proved to be constructive or not," said Rajiv Kakria, citizen activist from Greater Kailash- 1.

The RWAs from east Delhi said the idea of a unified MCD was much better than the present one. The cash-strapped east MCD has not been able to look after the civic requirements of the residents. "The trifurcation was politically driven and did not benefit general public. The roads, drains and sanitation are a major challenge in east Delhi. The condition continues to worsen. Whenever we approached councillors with our problem, we were sent back saying there were no funds to meet civic needs. Unification would narrow down problems," said BS Vohra from East Delhi RWAs Joint Front Federation.

Some others feel the decision to trifurcate the erstwhile civic agency has not met expectations.

"Trifurcation was done to make the MCD authorities approachable for the residents. There were speculations that the authorities were not channeling funds equally and focus was being laid on few areas. But today, the civic agencies are badly failing in their task. The salaries are not being disbursed in time, no concrete development work has taken place and there has been an increase in the expenditure on the establishment. However, comparing the two, a single MCD proved be a better option," said Saurabh Gandhi, general secretary of United Residents of Delhi.

with thanks : Mail Today : LINK : for detailed news report.

Odd Even : Nav Bharat Times

Truly, an ODD way to EVEN out Misgovernance of Decades !

Truly, an ODD way to EVEN out Misgovernance of Decades - Will be very difficult to implement - But do we have any other option ? 

We will support the decision of the Government, for this mega trial of Odd & Even, as we ourselves have observed the Carcinogen Benzen at 19 times, and the Killer PM 10 at 33 times in the city, in the last few days. Even the Poisonous Carbon Monoxide is on the higher side at many locations.

But the point is, that, how this scheme will be implemented ? Do they have the infrastructure to implement this scheme ? Do they have the Public Transport to cater Extra 20 Lakh persons daily, by grounding over 14 lakh cars ?

We are doubtful and even the Govt itself, is in doubt, over the success of the Odd & even scheme, while Delhi CM clearly & openly saying that if the new scheme is violated by the masses, it will be grounded. 

Don't you think that before ordering any such scheme, before enforcing a Rs 2,000 /- challan, the concerned authorities and the Town planners, must answer, some of the very basic issues, responsible for the massive traffic jam & severe pollution, in the city due to Misgovernance of Decades :

1. How the number of vehicles had risen from 41 Lakh to 88 Lakh in just 10 years time, without any check on pollution, without compatible road and parking network, while converting the city into a Gas chamber ?

2. Why the roads, that were to be widened almost 30 - 40 years ago, have not yet been widened, even though these roads are the main reason, for the massive Traffic Jam and severe Pollution in the city, with no such Road widening plans visible anywhere ?

3. Why there is no check on the encroachments that also cause massive traffic jams in almost every market / locality, again, causing severe air and noise pollution ?

4. Where is the Public transport system in the city ? To catch a jam packed metro, one has to run after dozens of Three Wheelers for bargaining a reasonable price, as they don't run on meters. To catch a Jam Packed DTC bus is not at all a soft option for many, that include Senior Citizens & Ladies.

5. Where is the Traffic Police to regulate the Traffic Flow. Most of them have to cater the VIP areas regularly and as a result, the Traffic Police department is unable to provide even a single cop for the inner areas. They can't even provide a Tow Away vehicle, for these locations.

It will be really difficult for the Government to implement any such scheme as there is no change in the basic infrastructure anywhere and it may cause havoc on the roads from the 1st of January.

Still, we will support the decision of the Government, for this mega trial of Odd & Even, as we ourselves have observed the Carcinogen Benzen at 19 times, and the Killer PM 10 at 33 times and in spite of the Misgovernance of Decades, we wish, if we could live in the pollution free environment of Delhi.

B S Vohra
Social Activist, 
President,
East Delhi RWAs Joint Front
www.RWABhagidari.com
www.RWABhagidari.blogspot.in

HARD Decisions and not ODD Decisions will Control Pollution ....... going after SOFT TARGETS is Event Management not Pollution Management

Open Letter to Mr. Kejriwal and Ms. Sunita Narain,

Kudos to you for boldly taking on a seemingly impossible task, you have my support for the two week EVENT. I call it an event because it exempts all the major polluters and inconveniences the TAX PAYING VICTIMS of GOVERNMENT APATHY.

You are going after the least polluting lot and will be penalising them Rs. 2000/-, that too only those who get caught. The real polluters will nonchalantly continue their merry way. In my earlier communication “An ODD way to EVEN out Misgovernance of Decades ….. VICTIMS of Apathy being Inconvenienced” I had said that one needs to first look at the REAL Causes of Pollution, then find solutions.

People at CSE have shown blinkered vision, they too have gone after the Soft Targets. The real reason for pollution is the pathetic CIVIC Infrastructure, Governance, Indiscipline & Migration and not majority of vehicles as claimed. No city can plan for or endlessly accommodate unchecked influx of people ...... but who will call the spade a spade.

Ill Planned ideas, only make the public more Cynical, remember BRT, planners thought that by packing in all the car users into buses on a dedicated track, pollution could be curbed. THAT FAILED because they were addressing the Pollution issue through blinkered vision of vehicles cause pollution. Had they first tried to address the Civic Issues that plague the city, they would have achieved better results and not alienated the Tax Paying Class.

ODDLY, EVEN now little thought has been given to the decades of CIVIC DEGENERATION the city of Delhi has been inflicted. Going after SOFT TARGETS and not VOTE/NOTE BANKS may give electoral dividends, but little by way of QUALITY OF LIFE.

Instead of EVENT MANAGEMENT, why not prepare a three year Civic Road Map, with clear deadlines:-

A.      Put  the Public Transport Infrastructure in place

B.      Stop Fleecing by Auto/ Taxis. In Kolkatta all Taxis have ‘NO REFUSAL’ written and enforced

C.      Clear Roads of all encroachments, expedite court cases for road widening

D.     Make all Public and Private Buildings/Farms confirm to REALISTIC Parking ECS standards

E.      Do not allow purchase of car/bus (private or commercial) without proof of parking space

F.       Ban Parking on Roads. Mixed Land Use Policy has virtually made On Road Parking a norm.

G.     Improve Road engineering and positioning of Bus Stops

H.     Remove bottle necks on roads like potholes, religious places, trees, defunct poles etc.

I.        Enforce Lane Discipline and rethink British Era Speed Limits (used for extorting than to regulate)

J.        Create subways and pedestrian crossings and enforce discipline

K.      Regulate fast and slow moving vehicles, there are no rules for Gramin Seva, Rickshaws etc.

L.        Enforce Bharat IV norms on gensets also

M.   Introduce First Class Compartments on Metro and more A/C busses for comfort

N.     Improve last mile connectivity

O.     Only Hatch Back Cars for recognized VVIPs …. Living by example

P.      FINALLY …… call centre type shared Pickup and Drop for all Government Officials …… in earlier times there used to be a special bus service to ferry MPs to Parliament. (has CSE collected data of Number of Government Vehicles on Road????)

I strongly believe that without addressing the above issues all efforts to Curb Pollution will come to naught.

It’s easier to Ban, than to Reform or to Enforce rule of Law ….. THE CHOICE IS BETWEEN TAKING TOUGH DECISIONS TO MAKE REAL DIFFERENCE …… OR TO MANAGE AN EVENT ……… AND EARN GREEN NGOs CARBON POINTS ?????

I support any initiative that curbs pollution ……. I will grudgingly abide by what the Government decides ….. in the hope that I am wrong and have raised unnecessary doubts. IF ONLY ?????

Warm Regards,

Rajiv Kakria

Merry Christmas !

Facebook Is Asking You To Sign Up For 'Free Basics', Which Is Just Another Name For Internet.Org

However, what it doesn't tell you is that 'Free Basics' is the other name for Internet.Org. It is the same service that net neutrality activists have been fighting against for a year now.

Since its India launch this May, Internet.org had come in for criticism for being a “walled garden” for its limited number of partners and single service provider.

Several internet activists had signed a petition against Facebook's initiative saying that goes against net neutrality and that world's poorest people will only be able to access a limited set of insecure websites and services if Internet.org is implemented.

"We are deeply concerned that Internet.org has been misleadingly marketed as providing access to the full Internet, when in fact it only provides access to a limited number of Internet-connected services that are approved by Facebook and local ISPs. In its present conception, Internet.org thereby violates the principles of net neutrality, threatening freedom of expression, equality of opportunity, security, privacy and innovation," the activists had said in the petition.

Net neutrality activists have said that Facebook's Internet.Org or now 'Free Basics' is a threat to the open, free Internet we’re used to—one that doesn’t discriminate between highly capitalized success stories like Netflix and Google and scrappy new startups that hope to be the next Google or YouTube or Facebook.

Please view the Huffington post's LINK for more details.

निर्भया हम सच मे शर्मिंदा है !

सच मे आज हमारा सिर शर्म से झुक रहा है, हम अपने आप से भी आँखें मिला कर नही देख सकते क्योंकि वो दामिनी, वो निर्भया, आज भी हम सब से अपने कतल का इंसाफ़ माँग रही है. यक़ीनन, उसकी चीखें, उसकी सिसकियाँ, अब हमे रातो को सोने नही देंगी. ऐसा क्यों ? क्यों हम निर्भया को इंसाफ़ ना दे पाए ? क्यों हम मासूम बच्चियों पे होते हुए अत्याचार, रोक ना पाए ? अगर आज भी हमे शर्म ना आई तो फिर कब आएगी ?

December 16 - Nirbhaya - We can never forget you !

India News : Tinight at 9.30 PM

Rich people can't go round in SUVs polluting the environment : Must Read

The Supreme Court's decision came in response to a clutch of petitions including one on banning diesel vehicles in some cities in the face of alarming pollution levels in the country.

"Rich people can't go round in SUVs polluting the environment," the court had strongly remarked yesterday. It had also slammed car dealers arguing against a National Green Tribunal order banning registration of diesel cars, saying, "People's life is at stake and you are interested in selling cars."

Must read : NDTV : LINK : for detailed news report.