Bengaluru, Nov 11: The Karnataka government also may follow the footsteps of the Delhi government by adopting a plan similar to the odd-even formula to curb the traffic menace and ever-increasing pollution in Bengaluru city.
Speaking to reporters here on Saturday Home Minister Ramalinga Reddy said: "If it works in Delhi, then we'll ask our transport department to roll it out and also discuss it with the chief minister," Reddy told reporters here.
The odd-even scheme, in which odd numbered cars have to ply on odd dates and even numbered cars on even dates, will come into effect for five days from Monday (November 13) in the national capital, where air pollution has reached alarming levels with thick smog engulfing the region. The odd-even scheme was enforced in Delhi twice in the past - January and April.
Reddy, however, said the odd-even scheme alone may not suffice for a city like Bengaluru where the vehicle population has soared through the years. "In 2013, Bengaluru had 54 lakh vehicles. In four years, nearly 12 lakh vehicles have been added. Pollution cannot be tackled unless the number of vehicles is reduced," Reddy, who was earlier Karnataka's transport minister, said.
The government is also taking steps to widen arterial roads in Bengaluru to decongest traffic, Reddy said. "Sarjapur Road, Hennur Main Road and Bannerghatta Road will be widened based on the new Transfer of Development Rights (TDR) rules," he said, citing examples of how road widening helped vehicular movement in Hyderabad and Secunderabad.
Reddy added that the problem of haphazard parking of vehicles on the streets can be addressed only if each house has space for vehicle parking. "There's a law to this effect that house owners should be responsible for parking vehicles, but the violation is very high," he said.
The kidnapped schoolboy was rescued by the police and reunited with his parents. Son of a gift shop owner from Basavanagudi area in Bengaluru, Chirag has reportedly told police that decided to make some quick money to spend on cricket betting and gambling after learning kidnap tricks from the ‘Crime Patrol’. According to police, Chirag reached a private school around 3pm on Tuesday on a Bounce rental bike and zeroed in on a fourth standard student who was walking out of school. He told the boy he was his father's friend and that he required help to search for a relative who had gone missing. The boy believed Chirag and rode pillion on the bike. Chirag then engaged the boy in conversation and learnt about his father's business and got his mobile phone number. He then made a call to the boy's father, demanded Rs 5 lakh and warned him against approaching cops. However, the boy's father alerted Cottonpet police and special teams were formed to crack the case. While Cottonpet inspector Venkatesh TC's squad verified CCTV footage in and around the school, Chamarajpet inspector BG Kumaraswamy's team started tracking the suspect's mobile phone movements. An hour later, the suspect's location was traced to a hotel on the Lavelle Road-St Mark's Road stretch. Police rushed there, rescued the boy and arrested Chirag.
Comments
Good decision. BJP will loose this time
Great. Along with vertical farming also should encourage under over bridge (on pillers). Pollution+Traffic will be less in future
Congress copying AAP trick. Do own idea as BJP doing
It will be great to reach on time, if more buses should be allowed along with this plan
It should implement all over karnataka. But at the same time as similar Delhi govt, relaxation should give to women and grant more KSRTC buses
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