With a view to making the Green Punjab Programme of the provincial government a great success, Rozgar Auto Industry (Pvt) Limited has manufactured a four-stroke rickshaw, which is available to public at reasonable rates.
Abdul Waheed, CEO Rozgar Auto Industry (Pvt) Limited told Business Recorder, here on Friday that the provincial government had already engaged around a dozen factories to improve the production of new brand rickshaws so as to replace two-stroke rickshaws with CNG-fitted four-stroke. Earlier, the government had engaged three factories to manufacture three-wheelers.
It may be mentioned that the provincial government decided in 2005 to replace two-stroke three-wheelers with CNG-fitted four-stroke rickshaws in Lahore, Multan, Faisalabad, Rawalpindi and Gujranwala by the end of 2007. Three manufacturers were ordered to produce 60,000 four-stroke vehicles, but they reportedly supplied over 6000 to the government, which were now plying on city roads.
According to Abdul Waheed, the government had also relaxed some conditions it had imposed on drivers to obtain loans from banks and corporation to buy a four-stroke rickshaw. This is good initiative on the part of the government.
"When the EPD launched a campaign against two-stroke rickshaws sometimes ago, the price of a two-stroke decreased and most of the drivers looked for four-stroke ones. But they were not available in the market thereby the price of the two-stroke rickshaws again got sustained," Waheed said. He complained that the two-stroke rickshaw was still being manufactured and transported to Sindh, Balochistan and the NWFP, which must be stopped.
He stated that his company was capable to enhance their production of 4-stroke rickshaws to make the Green Punjab Programme of the government a success. The programme has been launched to replace the 2-stroke rickshaws with 4-stroke CNG rickshaws for ensuring clean environment.
Abdul Waheed urged the government to chalk out a comprehensive plan to guide the manufacturing companies regarding the demand of 4-stroke rickshaws. He said that standard as well as production of CNG-rickshaws should be improved so that the desired results of the programme regarding pollution control could be achieved within shortest possible time.
He praised the Chief Minister Punjab, Chaudhry Pervaiz Ellahi for initiating the Green Punjab Programme. He called for simplifying the lengthy procedural formalities for getting loans through Bank of Punjab under the Green Punjab programme for which Punjab government is providing subsidy. He said that other banks should also be included in this programme and the procedure of getting loans should be simplified. He emphasised upon the need of creating maximum awareness among masses about environmental pollution.
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