North MCD's pilot penalty scheme on parking fails

The North Delhi Municipal Corporation’s penalty scheme to prevent unauthorised parking from roadsides at its two busy markets failed on the ground, for lapses in the implementation and stiff opposition from traders and shoppers. The civic body had started the scheme on a pilot basis — vehicle owners to pay Rs 100 per hour for leaving their cars/two-wheelers on the MCD roads — for a month between September 1 and September 30. 

The experiment has failed at a time when the city government is expected to notify new Parking Rules 2017, which will require penalties to be paid for illegal parking on roads and even in residential areas. Under the upcoming rules, the civic agencies will be tasked with its implementation, as most parking lots in the city are managed by the three corporations — North, South, and East. 

The experiment was started at Kamla Nagar and Model Town — markets with a heavy footfall on a daily basis. 

“The traders, who are the major community in the markets, were opposed to the scheme, as they would have to pay Rs 80 for parking their vehicles in the single lane outside shops under the scheme. While there was a major relief from congestion during this period, people were against paying the penalty which would go up to Rs 1000 for a full day’s unauthorised parking,” said senior officials.

Besides, monitoring of the area on a daily basis required a large workforce and support from traffic police for issuing challans, officials added. 

“The implementation of the scheme on the ground was a bigger challenge, as having a team dedicated to monitoring parking on a daily basis was becoming difficult. However, we are discussing the issue and it may be re-launched,” said officials. 

The matter is being looked at by the corporation’s RP Cell. The scheme was to be adopted by the South and East municipal corporations if the scheme had been a success.