Proposal for ‘No Vehicle Day’ in Lakshadweep put on hold

The Lakshadweep Administration submitted before the Kerala High Court that its proposal to declare each Wednesday as ‘No Vehicle Day’ in the Union Territory would not be implemented till the end of the Ramzan season.

This comes in the wake of a petition filed before the court by a lawyer from Kalpeni, seeking an interim stay on the proposal that was set to be implemented from 25 February. Under this, only vehicles used by people with disabilities and those deployed for security and emergency medical services were exempted from the regulation that is purportedly aimed at curbing pollution and to promote public health through walking and bicycling.

The petitioner had contended before the High Court that the regulation would affect the freedom of movement of people and also his professional obligations which required frequent travel to Kerala. People, including patients, who commute between the isles and from the isles to the mainland in ships and the transportation of essential goods from ship terminals too could get affected due to this, he had said.

The hearing on the plea has been posted to March 16.