New scrap policy and the reality of in our country...

        Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced in her 2021-2022 budget speech that 20-year-old vehicles would be scrapped. This will help reduce pollution by about 25 to 30 per cent and buy new vehicles to replace the old ones, This will give a boost to the Auto industry. 

       According to the Ministry of Roads and Transport, the new scrap policy will reduce the use of vehicles that cause more pollution. Which will result in contributing to the prevention of pollution. 

       It is also said that with this policy, the government wants to put more emphasis on public transport. It is true that this new policy will remove many old vehicles from transportation. But when it comes to public transportation, it's still not as efficient as it should be. Considering the population of our country, our public transport system is inadequate. We have noticed this when we travelling in ST in Maharashtra. Considering the seating capacity of the ST and the number of passengers in it, one realizes how inadequate our transportation system is. How crowded the bus is.

       Looking back to the 1980's and 1990's, people were using public transportation extensively. But today, private transport is widely valued. And Corona's fears add to that. Why are people using so much private transport? Because our public transport system lacks in providing services. People consider private transport to be safer.

       And the second point is that the LPG policy of 1992 has increased the flow of money into the hands of the people, improved the living standards of the people. So people feel inferior to travel by public transport. Therefore, they prefer private transport. Such as bikes, cars, and more. 

        If the government thinks that people should use public transport, which will help prevent pollution, then the government has to take the initiative. Love for the country has to be awakened in the people, they have to be made aware of their duty, why should people in the country opt for public transport instead of private. Awareness about pollution needs to be created. People's participation needs to be increased. For that, we have to increase the participation of the people by using the minimum government maximum governance as our Prime Minister said.

        If the government takes the initiative, people will definitely opt for public transport. For this, the government should study many developed countries where public transport is preferred over private transport and use it in a way that is compatible with our country. And to reduce pollution, the option of battery-powered vehicles and others ways are also there, it should be noted. This means that there is no point in just formulating a policy, but the right steps must be taken.

-Shivaji Patil