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This is an archive article published on December 31, 2006
RICKSHAW: THE JOURNEY ENDS
For Kolkata, the New Year will shed a piece of the old 8212; hand-pulled rickshaws.
Written by SUCHETANA HALDAR
Kolkata | December 31, 2006 12:00 AM IST
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2 min read
For Kolkata, the New Year will shed a piece of the old 8212; hand-pulled rickshaws. With Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee determined to see the end of the primitive mode of transport, the tinkle of its bells will be silenced for ever as they saunter out of the cityscape.
The Calcutta Hackney Carriage Bill, passed in the Legislative Assembly on December 4, was the final step taken towards the total ban on this antique mode of transport. The Bill was introduced in the Assembly on July 20, 2006, and was subsequently referred to a Select Committee on a motion moved by Bhattacharjee, who is also Minister-in-Charge of the Home Department. It was adopted by the House on the same day.
The Hackney-Carriage Act will see the phase-wise removal of hand-pulled rickshaws from the city8217;s thoroughfares. In fact, the ban on hand-pulled rickshaws is an issue that is widely debated in political circles. While the CM himself has spoken against this 8220;inhuman practice8221;, the Kolkata Traffic Police have advocated the ban contending that hand-pulled rickshaws lead to serious traffic congestions.
But a section of the Opposition feels that it will take time for the Act to come into effect. Within political circles there are pockets of resistance to the ban with the argument being that the ban will lead to large-scale unemployment among the rickshaw pullers. At present, the number of hand-pulled rickshaws in the city is 5,987. Since each rickshaw is used in shifts of two or three daily, the actual number of pullers add up to more than 18,000.
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