Minister for road transport Nitin Gadkari, who is in London to launch a ‘masala bond’ on the London Stock Exchange to raise funds for the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), said controlling traffic and reducing pollution in New Delhi is a “difficult task”.
Gadkari used a media interaction at the Indian high commission on Thursday to reel out an impressive list of figures and projects, but admitted that the only negative in his ministry’s record was the issue of road safety.
However, he promised journalists that the next time they visited New Delhi, pollution would be “50% down”, when eastern and western bypasses being laid will ensure that traffic from various states does not need to enter the Capital.
“Delhi is a difficult task,” he said with a smile, and noted that many families in the Capital had more than two cars. It was also difficult to lay cycle tracks in the Capital, he said.
“In Delhi, there is no place for cycle tracks; we need mass rapid transport systems there. We are planning 70km mass rapid transport between Dhaula Kuan and Manesar,” Gadkari said.
According to him, 30% driving licences in India were “bogus”, but said new measures will help eradicate such malpractices in the system.
Source: HindustanTimes