Editor
Apropos the news item, Govt mulls more pollution testing centres in city (ST 23rd OCT 2019), the opening of more of such centres is inevitable given the present rush of vehicle owners at the only existing centre to obtain a Pollution Under Check (PUC) Certificate for their vehicles. From what is learnt , there is sudden enthusiasm in recent days from the concerned authority to demand for such a certificate from vehicle owners. There might not have been such enthusiasm in the past which could have made many vehicle owners complacent in obtaining such a certificate earlier.
The present congestion of vehicles at the only pollution testing centre in Shillong because of the rush certainly causes inconvenience to vehicle owners and it does call for a system to be put in place in order to reduce this congestion. For a start the pollution test can be prioritized based on the registration year of the vehicles. Those with older registration certificates and especially diesel vehicles may be tested first since the emission from such vehicles is likely to contribute more to the air pollution. A reasonable time frame may be given to complete the test and that too after more pollution check centers are opened up . The tests for other vehicles registered in recent years could be subsequently taken up. Consequently the PUC certificate may be asked to be produced after the end of the time frame for obtaining the certificate. This is as a consideration from the concerned authority for not having made a consistent demand for such a certificate in the past.
While there can be no excuse for any act which can cause air pollution, however the penalty for violation could perhaps be according to the gravity of the pollution prevailing within any area and its surroundings. As of now the air pollution in our state capital is not as high as that in the National Capital Region (NCR) with New Delhi itself having the distinction of being one of the most polluted capital cities in the world. Quite contrary to that, we still have reasonably fresh air to breathe throughout the year in a number of areas within our state capital, in our towns and especially in the countryside. Moreover there is no definitive conclusion that vehicle emissions alone cause high levels of air pollution here while the other factors or other sources of pollutants are yet to be evaluated fully to weigh their contribution towards such pollution.
Though it would be justified to impose a high penalty for non-production of the PUC in the NCR as one of the penalties hiked in the latest amendment of the Motor Vehicle Act of India, for Meghalaya to also follow this right away and impose the high penalty is perhaps contentious. Of course as of now we would not like our region to be tagged as also being one of the most polluted regions in the world. On the other hand, the air pollution out of vehicle emission can still be checked here even with a marginal hike in the penalty provided vehicle owners are made aware about the need for periodic emission check of their vehicles followed by the consistent check of the PUC certificate by the concerned authority.
Some states in the country have not accepted in totality the latest amendments to the Motor Vehicle act of the country relating to the penalties, on the plea that there are local factors to be considered. Likewise the Govt of Meghalaya could perhaps take the local factors into consideration while fixing the penalty for not having a PUC certificate. A favorable conclusion could be arrived at after a proper assessment of the air pollution index here and after identifying the other likely sources of air pollution and also after considering the other means to tackle the problem.
Yours etc.,
K L Tariang,
Via email
Assam’s landmark decision
Editor
In a landmark decision that would bring great changes in the social milieu of Assam, the Assam Cabinet has decided to deny government jobs to people with more than two children. It may be recalled that in September 2017, the Assam assembly had passed the ‘Population and Women Empowerment policy of Assam’ which specified that candidates with two children would be eligible for government employment and the existing government staff were to strictly follow the two-child family norm.
Assam Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, who was pushing for the population policy to be adopted, recently said, “While the state’s population rose by 46 lakh from 2.66 crore in 2001 to 3.12 crore in 2011, a preliminary analysis has shown that it has increased by one crore in 16 years between 2001 and 2017. This increase is not only alarming but also unacceptable.”
The alarming increase in population was due to the early marriage in communities living in char (riverine), tea gardens and tribal areas. Girls in these areas marry between 14 and 16 years, while boys have been found to be marrying between 16 and 20 years. Since the reason for the alarming increase in population is early marriage, the government must strictly implement the existing government rules to forestall early marriage among the people.
Taking a cue from Assam, the Central government too can implement such novel ideas to halt the alarming population increase. Undoubtedly, the country’s population has increased beyond limit and because of this the nation is facing lots of problems. Some urgent innovative measures have to be adopted by the government to check population growth.
Two-child family norm is a good idea and the government must promote it. People’s representatives and the government employees should be asked to abide by the norm. Another method the government can adopt is to implement card system to families depending on their children. Preferences and privileges should be given to people who stick to the two-child family norm. If the government implements plans in an earnest way, it can surely check the population explosion in a big way.
Yours etc.,
TK Nandanan,
Via email