The Sindh Chief Secretary has convened a high level meeting to work out a viable plan to convert two-stroke rickshaws into four-stroke to turn Karachi into an eco-friendly metropolis.
The meeting has been summoned after experiencing difficulties in producing desired results regarding conversion of rickshaws because of technical and financial impediments, sources in Sindh Environment Department told Business Recorder on Friday.
According to the sources, the meeting would be attended by Sindh Transport Secretary, Sindh Environment Secretary, District Co-ordination Officer (DCO) Karachi, Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Traffic Police, Karachi, and representatives of other stakeholders.
"After converting the rickshaws from two-stroke to four-stroke, the noise pollution could be reduced, but there would be little effect on air pollution caused by these vehicles," the sources said while elaborating the details of the technical difficulties in rickshaw conversion. According to an estimate, there are around 50,000 auto-rickshaws plying on the roads of the metropolis and majority of these vehicles is two-stroke.
According to reports, only two rickshaws had been converted into four-stroke so far, and conversion of thousands of such rickshaws seemed almost impossible, sources observed. These auto-rickshaws were the major contributors in raising air pollution as majority of them were old, faulty and remained unchecked by the authorities, they said.
It is pertinent to note that registration of two-stroke rickshaws has been banned and under the directives of Sindh High Court, they should be withdrawn in phases. Sindh Governor Dr Ishrat-ul-Ibad Khan, however, had given relaxation to rickshaw owners by mid of 2008 to switch over to CNG-fitted after being pursued by the rickshaw owners.
A few days ago, the Transport Department sent an official note to the DIG, Traffic, to take measures for the compliance of the SHC directives, and asked him to ensure measures against rickety, faulty vehicles. However, the DIG, Traffic, has not yet replied to the note. It is learnt that the rickshaw owners and drivers have expressed willingness of phasing out the two-stroke rickshaws to four-stroke, using CNG for a pollution-free environment.
They said that conversion also affected the performance of the vehicles and consumed more fuel, resulting in emission of more smoke. They said that they had invented a technology to convert the two stroke rickshaws into CNG-fitted eco-friendly rickshaws without affecting its performance.
"All we need is to have sufficient number of fuel engines, provided the government supports us in getting these engines so that two-stroke rickshaws could be phased out gradually," they added. They hoped that in the meeting, the demand of the rickshaw owners would be considered.