NCR barrier falls for a free ride
Daily commuting woes of 35-year-old Kalyani Singh will soon be over. An executive with a multinational bank, Singh will no longer have to pay through her nose to get an auto-rickshaw from her CP office to her Noida sector-22 residence.
Daily commuting woes of 35-year-old Kalyani Singh will soon be over. An executive with a multinational bank, Singh will no longer have to pay through her nose to get an auto-rickshaw from her CP office to her Noida sector-22 residence.
“If I am forced to take an auto, I would either have to change three autos or shell out at least Rs 200 to reach home,” Singh said.
The recent notification of the reciprocal common transport agreement between the governments of Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan has finally paved way for unobstructed movement of autos, taxis and radio taxis within the National Capital Region (NCR).
While most autos and taxis refused to take passengers to the satellite towns, those who agreed asked for exorbitant amounts. Radio taxis were not allowed to move in Noida, Greater Noida and Ghaziabad.
“We get a lot of calls from Noida and Ghaziabad, but we can not service those clients since we do not have the permit to enter these cities. The implementation of this contract will definitely benefit a large number of people living in these areas,” said Binod Mishra, general manager (operations), Mega Cabs.
According to the agreement, auto rickshaws and taxis would not be required to pay any additional tax or permit charges while moving in the NCR. These vehicles will have to be CNG-run, comply with Euro III norms and display the colour code and logo designed by the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad.
While any number of taxis can ply between Delhi and NCR towns, there would be a restriction on the number of autos plying between the states.
Special permits will be issued to autorickshaws and taxis on bilateral basis.
“We have decided 4000 autorickshaws will ply between the national capital and Gurgaon, Faridabad, Bahadurgarh and Sonepat,” Joint State Transport Controller of Haryana Amardeep Jain said.
However, senior officials accept that it can take some more time before the final implementation of the agreement on ground. The constituent states have to select the autos-rickshaws for granting special permit for NCR. Counter-signing of these permits will also take time. The autos will also have to get the new paint done to be eligible to ply in NCR.