Impounding illegally plying e-rickshaws: Delhi govt to HC

The AAP government today told the Delhi High Court that it is impounding all e-rickshaws which are plying in the city on non-designated roads in violation of the rules regulating them.
Justice Manmohan was told that as per the government's December 11, 2014, notification, e-rickshaws have been banned from plying or parking on 236 roads in the city.
The government said e-rickshaws which are found running on these roads are impounded as fining them was not a deterrent.
It also told the court that it was in the process of framing a legislation to regulate e-rickshaws.
The submission was made in response to the court's query whether e-rickshaws are permitted to ply or are they still illegal despite the notification.

The court asked the government to place on the record its notification before the next date of hearing on October 12.

According to the government notification, in New Delhi area e-rickshaws have been restricted from plying on 77 roads.
It says e-rickshaws cannot also ply on 19 roads and locations in central Delhi.
Apart from central Delhi, 38 roads in south Delhi and 23 in south-east have been identified where such vehicles are prohibited.
Other roads where there is a ban on the battery-operated vehicles are 12 roads in north Delhi, 15 in north-west, 11 in north-east, 9 in east, 21 in south-west and 9 roads in west Delhi.

The central government had also notified the Central Motor Vehicles (Sixteenth Amendment) Rules, 2014, which paves way for plying of 'special purpose battery operated vehicles'.
The court was hearing Shahnawaz Khan's contempt plea, filed through advocate Sugriva Dubey, alleging that e-rickshaws are continuing to operate in the national capital in violation of the court's September 9, 2014 direction.