Parking area management: SC seeks Delhi govt's reply on report of EPCA

The Supreme Court asked the Delhi government on Monday to give its response to the Environment Pollution Control Authority's report on parking area management plan in the national capital.

The Environment Pollution Control Authority (EPCA), in its report, commended the work done by the South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) on parking area management in the Lajpat Nagar area.

A bench of Justices Arun Mishra and Deepak Gupta granted a week's time to the counsel appearing for the Delhi government to file a reply to the report.

The apex court appointed panel EPCA, in its report, said the SDMC has initiated a pilot project in Lajpat Nagar that encompasses both commercial area of Central Market and adjacent residential colonies of the area.

Senior advocate Aparajita Singh, who is assisting the top court as an amicus curiae in pollution matters, said the SDMC had done a commendable job in devising a parking area management plan for the crowded Lajpat Nagar area market and adjacent colonies.

She said the new parking space is utilised in such a manner that it even provides way for emergency response vehicles and the model can be replicated by others.

Singh said the SDMC had complied with the parking management plan and the guidelines framed for the purpose.

To this, the bench asked what was the status of other municipal corporations in adopting the plan in the national capital.

The bench, which initially said that it would pass orders on the issue, asked the Delhi government counsel to file its response on the report filed by the EPCA by July 26 and listed the matter for July 29.

In its report, the EPCA has said Lajpat Nagar pilot project of the SDMC shows how the parking area management plan (PAMP) needs to be developed and then implemented in different zones or colonies of the city.

It said what is clear from the Lajpat Nagar project is that currently, the colonies are over-saturated with cars and badly organised for parking of commercial and residential vehicles.

"This is no easy access for emergency services of ambulance, fire tenders and police vans during night," it said.

Highlighting the problem area, the report said there is a huge gap between the parking demand and supply, which will grow without restraints and regulations on legal and illegal parking.

It suggested that if careful planning is done, then spaces for car parking can be identified and provided for.

"This will require shared parking so that night-daytime parking is shared between commercial and residential areas. It will also require creation of additional parking areas but within limits," the report said.

It said the parking area management plan can only be enforced if there is a legal framework which provides for deterrence against illegal parking and penalties for not adhering to the plan.