The experiment has tested the public’s participation in a mass exercise which required a great deal of preparedness as also been an occasion to assess whether Delhi’s public transport system could cope with half the number of vehicles staying off the roads to reduce pollution. The actual result of decrease in pollution levels may not be very encouraging but none the same significant. Lower microns particulate matter has registered a significant decline which is an actual indicator of the exercise, although since Delhi area has a number of industries and power plants that contribute more to the extent of pollution since they are also run on fossil fuels. The pollution in Delhi is also dependent on the ambient temperature and humidity as also the direction of the wind which circulates the pollutants as also the density of carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides and sulphur dioxide to settle and restrict vision.
Importantly, the ability of Delhi to rely heavily on its public transportation as the network such as the buses and trains have been tested and the significance as well as the efficacy of the odd-even exercise given a chance to assess such an organized restrictive event. In the present scenario of cheap petrol and easily availability of loans to finance purchase of new vehicles this exercise has made a mark for the rest of Indian metropolises to emulate in times of high pollution levels. The quantum increase in the number of vehicles bought by citizens has also given rise to speculation which might not be an exaggeration whether in future an odd-even exercise might not be enough but a 0 to 9 exercise might have to be brought in force due to the increase in vehicular traffic and curbing traffic jams and controlling parking of vehicles, with the same degree of infrastructure available.
