Need for drastic steps to check pollution

By Akila Dinakar

CHENNAI, APRIL 5. The alarmingly high levels of Particulate Matter and Respirable Dust Particle pollution in the city calls for a major, Delhi-like, CNG-based, clean up act, environmentalists here say.

Recently, the Citizen, Consumer and Civic Action Group (CAG) and the Chennai City Traffic Police launched a `Clean Air Campaign' to check increasing vehicular pollution. In the first phase, information on pollution will be disseminated to vehicle users, Mr. Bharath Jairaj, Co-ordinator, CAG said.

At a CAG meeting last week with officials of Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC), Chennai Corporation, Metrowater and the Transport Department, an action plan to tackle vehicular pollution was discussed. A first step would be for the Government departments to check their own vehicles.

While statistics point out that the eight lakh two wheelers and the increasing number of private vehicles contribute in large measure to the vehicular pollution, discussions also involve the Metrowater tankers, Corporation lorries and MTC buses. Officials say these vehicles cannot be withdrawn citing pollution problems as commuters would suffer.

The Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) chairperson, Ms. Sheela Rani Chunkath, says the Board wrote to the Centre asking for LPG filling stations. Once the Ministry specified rules for conversion kits, auto-rickshaws, among the worst polluters, could switch to LPG.

In the second phase, stringent measures would be adopted to check polluting lorries. The Board would seek to remove old lorries from the roads. ``While the Government departments, including MTC are co-operating with our demands for pollution checks, private vehicle owners were lax in obtaining pollution under control certificates'', Ms. Chunkath said.

Mr. Syed Munir Hoda, Transport Secretary, says that when the Phase Two of Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS) was ready, MTC buses could run a complementary service, feeding to rail terminals and concentrate on serving peripheral areas. Unlike New Delhi, the good suburban railway network can be made use of, he said, hinting at the integration of bus and suburban train services for reducing air pollution.

Though moves are afoot to make the MTC acquire CNG buses, the present financial crunch deters the Corporation from going in for conversion owing to high costs. The money is needed for fleet augmentation and purchase of spare parts, officials say.

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