Karnataka - Mysore   

NGO for strengthening public transport

By Our Staff Correspondent

MYSORE, JAN. 5. Expressing concern over increasing number of private vehicles here, Mysore Grahakara Parishat, a non-governmental organisation, has underscored the need to improve public transport.

According to a press statement from its convenor, A.R. Venkatesan, a hundred vehicles on an average are registered a day here.

Pollution

Air and noise pollution, accidents and traffic jams are increasing because of this.

He said such a phenomenon was not limited to Mysore or Bangalore, where 800 vehicles are registered daily on an average. Referring to recent reports in the media, he said this is the trend in every city of the country. For instance, Chennai witnessed a population growth of 10 per cent in the last decade. But the number of vehicles in that city increased nearly 11 times faster at 108 per cent during the period. Thus, the number of vehicles there has more than doubled in the last decade.

He said the number of public buses for one lakh people is going down in every major city. "If you take Ahmedabad as an example, there were 23 buses for one lakh people in 1990, but there are only nine now." This is forcing people to buy two- and four-wheelers, increasing the vehicle density.

Though the Union and State Governments are aware of the problem, their actions are making it worse.

While banks are offering loans on easy instalments for buying cars and two-wheelers, the Government is building flyovers and widening roads, often at the expense of pavements.

Tax

Besides, tax on private vehicles is lower than that on Government vehicles. All these factors make ownership of private vehicles more attractive. But no Government is taking action to strengthen public transport facilities.

"The automobile industry in U.S. achieved dominance by buying out railways and tramways and destroying them. In India, the Government seems to be doing this job," he added.

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