In order to alleviate traffic difficulties in Bengaluru, the Karnataka High Court has mandated that the state government alter school and industrial establishment times in cooperation with stakeholders.
The hearing centered on a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) that Samarpana Trust in 2020 filed on Tuesday in an effort to put into effect a Supreme Court order from 2014 meant to lessen traffic congestion in urban areas. The PIL specifically called for better traffic control between Mekhri Circle and the BDA headquarters.
The state government, through the secretary of school education and higher education, may call a meeting of stakeholders, including representatives of private/government institutions, school bus operators, and parents’ associations, and take up the issue of revising school timings in order to ease traffic, while also taking the security and safety of children into consideration.
The bench also directed the secretary of Labor and Industry to organize meetings for all parties involved in the industrial sector. “..the secretary, industries and labor, may convene meetings of interested parties, including representatives of associations of industries/factories, industrial organizations, and chambers of commerce, to consider reviewing working hours of industrial units, factories, commercial houses, enterprises, etc. The bench said that the stakeholders might recommend flexible work schedules or any other strategies for lowering traffic and the number of cars using the roads during rush hours.
The bench also suggested that the secretary of Industries and Labour call a conference with representatives from different industries, factories, the Chamber of Commerce, and other organizations to solicit feedback on prospective scheduling modifications in workplaces, commercial premises, and factories.
The bench also made it clear that interested parties may submit flexible work schedules or any other similar recommendation to ease traffic and lessen the strain on roadways during peak hours.
The court found that if the police executed a 2014 notice barring certain kinds of heavy trucks from entering during particular hours of the day, traffic congestion in the Central Business District might be somewhat reduced.
The state was permitted to proceed with these activities by the bench as well.
“We permit the state government to proceed further and to take appropriate steps already initiated by the state government for ease of traffic and by considering the direction/suggestion of petitioner and the court, submit a fresh status and action taken report to this court after six weeks,” the bench stated.
