Tuesday, Oct 26, 2004
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Advts: Classifieds | Employment | Obituary | New Delhi
By Sujay Mehdudia
NEW DELHI, OCT. 25. In a move that could have far-reaching repercussions for the city and its future growth and development, the Environmental Pollution (Control and Prevention) Authority (EPCA) has sought directions from the Supreme Court to bar the Government from allowing any further mixed land use development in the city and putting an end to all commercial development in residential areas till the civic agencies come out with a comprehensive parking policy for Delhi. In its report to the Supreme Court, the EPCA -- headed by Bhure Lal -- has pleaded that mixed land use should not be allowed without adequate parking provisions and any spill over should be checked and controlled with stringent parking charges. It has sought directions to ask the civic agencies and the Government to come out with a composite parking policy within two months. "The current chaos in parking cannot be sorted out without addressing the fundamental issue of mixed land use policy and integrating a composite parking policy with it. Anything else will be purely cosmetic and will not solve the problem. This should also be supported by strong enforcement to prevent unauthorised and ad hoc parking,'' the EPCA submitted in its report. In its report, it stated that misuse of the mixed land use policy was leading to densification of residential sites and compounding the problem. This policy has led to virtual chaos in large parts of the city as commercial complexes were taking over residential areas, leading to congestion and parking problems. Representatives from local civic agencies have given many instances during their interaction with EPCA where the mixed land use policy was being blatantly misused. The pollution control authority has observed that mixed land use policy has been consistently misused, leading to increasing commercialisation of residential areas. This mindless commercialisation of residential area has led to a parking mess in the city. The problem of parking was therefore symptomatic and cannot be controlled unless the fundamental constraints of land use policy were overcome. The guidelines for parking in mixed land use were very ad hoc and limited. For instance, the Gazette Notification dated March 3, 2003, that allowed nursing homes, guesthouses and banks in residential areas has given the following guidelines for parking only at those sites. All parking requirements in plot size over 250 sq metres to be provided within the plot and in smaller plots land in the vicinity will be identified and common parking areas developed. The EPCA has maintained that no guideline for parking exists for other commercial uses in residential areas even though such uses have been legalised. Therefore there was a need for a composite parking policy for the city. Currently the plans of the city agencies to tackle the problems of parking include construction of modern multi-level parking systems in various key markets, for which they are issuing tenders for construction and proposals to increase parking charges for different areas of the city. "On review of these initiatives, EPCA finds that the critical elements are missing in the parking initiatives of agencies. Rationalisation of parking fees therefore is an important factor to be looked at. The provision of parking facilities involves considerable costs that should be legitimately passed on to the users,'' said EPCA member and Director of the Centre for Science and Environment, Sunita Narain. According to transport experts, parking restrictions was one of the most powerful mechanisms to restrict use of cars, because accessibility was directly affected. The full costs of creating parking lots must be factored in and recovered from the users. The users must be charged for the cost of land occupied by cars and the investment made to create them. The parking policy still does not consider the principles of restricting the supply of parking, which eventually would limit the number of vehicles in the city, experts feel.
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