Parking Space Proof Might Be Needed For Vehicle Registration

Buying cars is not difficult, but finding parking space one’s the vehicle can be stressful. So now, in an attempt to decongest the roads and parking spaces, the government is contemplating allowing registration of vehicles only if the owners provide proof of the availability of parking space. In a parallel attempt at urban planning and social engineering, Union Minister Venkaiah Naidu also said that, in future, permission would not be given for any construction unless it has a provision for toilets.

Speaking about this development, Mr Naidu said, "In future, it would be mandated [that] no permission would be given to any construction without a toilet ... No car or vehicle should be registered without adequate parking space availability certificate." He added, "I am holding discussions with Nitin Gadkari and also sensitising the states. We are moving in that direction (to get such a mechanism implemented)."

Earlier, Mr Naidu also launched the 'Google toilet locator' that would help people search for toilets in Delhi-NCR as well as in Indore and Bhopal. The Google platform offers the locations of over 6,200 public toilets, including those at shopping malls, hospitals, bus/train stations, petrol pumps and metro stations.

Naidu also stated, "We have already collated community and public toilet data in 5 cities of NCR (Delhi, Gurgaon, Faridabad, Ghaziabad and Noida) and two cities from MP (Indore and Bhopal). In fact, the Delhi-NCR region alone has more than 5,100 toilets listed."

This move is part of the objective of obtaining an Open Defecation Free (ODF) status for the cities and towns mentioned, and we welcome it wholeheartedly. However, as far as producing a parking space certificate is concerned, the implementation is bound to face some resistance from people all over the country. As we know, most Indian cities are not planned, and parking on the roads hinders the free flow of traffic. So, this initiative by the government is commendable. However, our guess is that the implementation will take a while.

Source: PTI