By - Imkong Walling
Governments rationing essential items in times of scarcity or national emergencies are generally well justified. It serves a purpose— to discourage hoarding, and ideally, to ensure that everybody, irrespective of class, get their due share.
The odd-even system of vehicle rationing based on registration number, on public roads by city authorities or municipal bodies, follows this principle. Reducing air pollution and traffic congestion are often the primary reasons.
Delhi-NCR was the first in India to introduce the practice. The idea was to improve Delhi’s infamously poor Air Quality Index, and as a bonus, reduce vehicular congestion by restricting the number of vehicles hitting the roads on a given day.
Sikkim’s capital, Gangtok was the other. In this instance, the idea was to reduce vehicular congestion in the touristic hill city’s narrow roads. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Nagaland was witness to an odd-even regulation, which was enforced in the interest of public health.
Currently, the Dimapur municipal area is set to transition to an odd-even system. This time, it is not for public health or reducing air pollution, but for reducing acute traffic congestion. As per the order notified by the Commissioner of Police, on December 7, it will be for a period of one month or till such time the old road overbridge gets restored.
The five-decade old overbridge was temporarily shut off to traffic in October, for a period of three months, to allow much needed restorative work. The downside, however, has been massive traffic jams.
Resorting to measures that would lessen commuter misery only seemed sensible. A light-bulb shone bright overhead, and voila, came up with the decision to order vehicles bearing registration plates ending with odd and even numbers taking turns to use public thoroughfares. It is all fair and well, supposedly.
What is missing in the plot, however, is an all too evident governance failure that resulted in the city’s authority suspending a Constitutional right, guaranteeing freedom of mobility to all citizens and the right to earning a livelihood. Comfortably telling autorickshaw drivers to take turns to earn a living does not sound fair.
All the while, failing to spot how the traffic police on the field ignore vehicles going out of line, further exacerbating congestion, and uncouth commuters making two-ways out of one-ways. Anwar Hussain Road and GS Road, respectively, should serve as evidence.
It took the Nagaland PWD over 50 years to realise that concrete infrastructure required facelifts, and more importantly, safety checks from time to time. It was in open sight but they chose to delay repairs. Even more ludicrous was coming up with the bright idea to coincide the repair with the three most festive and busiest months in Nagaland’s calendar.
The traffic norms, notified over the years, apparently reek of class discrimination. Restricting autorickshaws and cycle rickshaws from entering certain roads and markets is like telling citizens without personal transport to “Take a hike!” Denying access to important market places to cycle rickshaws, in particular, has had a relatively eco-friendly mode of public transport pushed to the margins in Dimapur.
A dependable and reasonably priced city bus service would have encouraged more people forego using personal cars for going from one point to the other.
The writer is a Principal Correspondent at The Morung Express. Comments can be sent to imkongwalls@gmail.com
