Wow what an achievement! A car that a middle class family can afford is finally here. When Mr.Ratan Tata saw a family of four people riding a two wheeler and getting drenched in rain, he got emotional and decided to provide such families four wheels with roof on the top. If only Indian government was so empathetic and tried to find solution to the misery of masses. However I really have doubts about Mr.Tata feeling emotional for that poor family!! I think being a sharp business man he saw tremendous opportunity in the great India middle class for a low cost car.
We cannot criticize Mr.Tata for what he has done because he has a business to run and is accountable for the profitability of his stakeholders. Moreover what ever people like Mr.Tata do, contributes towards increasing GDP and employment rate of the country, which in turn make us better off as individuals and as a nation. My problem is with the so called rulers and policy makers of the country who time after time have proved to be myopic. My concern is an important study conducted few years back and I would like to share with all of you.
The study
It is becoming clear that the pattern of economic growth that we are adopting is becoming increasingly associated with environmental pollution. A study com- paring the rates of economic growth and the rates of growth of vehicular pollution and industrial pollution shows that during 1975–1995, the Indian economy grew by 2.5 times, but the industrial pollution load grew by 3.47 times and the vehicle pollution load by 7.5 times
Indeed, Indian cities are being exposed to high levels of air pollution and people living in these cities are paying a price for the deterioration in air quality. The World Bank has estimated that Indians are spending Rs 4550 crores every year on treatment of diseases causedby ambient air pollution air quality in Delhi is deteriorating. Levels of primary pollutants – suspended particulate matter (SPM), nitrogen oxide and sulphur dioxide – have gone up significantly in the last decade
The consistently high levels of total SPM are worrying..This size of particulates is known to cause severe damage to the lungs. In fact, the World Health Organisation (WHO) reports that there is no safe level for particulate matter emissions
International studies have confirmed association between elevated levels of particulate air pollution and decline in lung function or increase in respiratory symptoms such as cough, shortness of breath, wheezing and asthma attacks. Studies have also found associations between particulate air pollution and rates of hospitalization, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and restricted activity due to illness.
A World Bank study on the health effects of air pollution in Delhi revealed that SPM in
Delhi alone led to premature death of 7491 persons in 1991–1992. The study repeated for the year 1995 shows an increase to about 10,000 in just three years, which means a death rate of one person per hour due to air pollution
This is just a small part of the study as it goes on to establish the evidences of air pollution increasing the incidences of lungs cancer and premature death in age group 40-45yrs. Adding to health related issues let us not forget the congestion on the roads. It is estimated that there are around 2.5 million cars and 4.5 million two wheelers in Delhi city only. I think many of us would agree that as compared to all the metros in the country Delhi boasts of widest roads and still it has major traffic snarls during the peak time i.e. between 8 am-11.30 am and 5.30 pm-8.00pm. Average time wasted during a traffic jam is half an hour and now with the launch of Nano we can expect around I million additional cars on the road, God help!! The jams not only waste important time but a lot of fuel is lost. Now I can imagine a family of four sitting in Nano for hours wasting time, money and above all splitting each others hair, as the stress level certainly shoot up during these snarls. What about the famous road rage of Delhi, do we see few more people killing each other over trivial matter? My imagination is not as big as Mr.Tata but I can see a lot of trouble.
The solution if you ask me is not a simple one, but I can think of few:
Enforce quota system like Singapore, each family/address should be allowed to have only one car. Enforce a law where it becomes mandatory for government and corporate offices to practice car pooling Develop better transport system like Delhi metro and high capacity buses, while improving infrastructure. If some one feels like having second car it should be only an electric car
I know it is not as simple as it appears but if political will is there this is certainly possible, what say?
