The Delhi High Court Monday permitted the AAP government to procure 500 standard-floor buses fitted with hydraulic lifts to facilitate accessibility to differently-abled persons in the national capital.
The court said there was no reason as to why it should prohibit the Delhi government from procuring more buses in pursuance of a tender for 1,000 standard-floor buses (SFB).
"That also when the government agrees in the affidavit before us as also before the Supreme Court that all SFBs now to be purchased would be provided and filled with hydraulic/mechanical lifts to facilitate accessibility to differently-abled persons.
"Taking note of all these factors, we are of the considered view that for the present, no further directions can be issued," a bench of Chief Justice Rajendra Menon and Justice V K Rao said.
The bench passed the judgement dismissing two PILs by a differently-abled person, Nipun Malhotra, who had challenged the Delhi government and the DTC's decision to buy 2,000 SFBs instead of low-floor buses (LFBs) for the national capital.
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The petitioner had contended that SFBs were not disabled-friendly as they were mounted on truck chassis and their height prevented differently-abled persons from boarding them.
After pronouncement of the verdict, Advocate Jai Dehadrai, appearing for Malhotra, said they would soon move the Supreme Court challenging the judgment.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)-led government and the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) had earlier told the high court that the SFBs proposed to be procured were disabled friendly as they would have hydraulic lifts for easy access.
The court, in its verdict, noted that the affidavits filed by the authorities showed that in Delhi, there are 1,648 SFBs in addition to the present proposal to procure 1,000 more SFBs which will take their number to 2,648.
There are 3,781 LFBs and the percentage of LFBs is 69.6 per cent, before procuring 1,000 buses, and after procuring 2,000 SFBs the percentage would come to 50.9 per cent and there is a proposal for procuring 1,000 more low-floor electric buses which would take the percentage of LFBs in the fleet to 56.7 per cent, it said.
"If that be the position, we have no hesitation in holding that the contention of the petitioner that all buses to be procured should be LFBs is unsustainable and this is not made out on considering the judgement and law laid down by the Supreme Court earlier...," the bench said.
It said the mandate by the apex court law and the rules framed, which are statutory in nature, are that at least 10 per cent of the buses should be LFBs by March 2018.
Thereafter, further compliance and action to be taken was to be submitted to the Supreme Court which is monitoring the matter, it said.
"The petition filed by the petitioner cannot be considered and the mandamus/prohibition as sought for cannot be granted. The petition being devoid of merits stands dismissed," the bench said.
The apex court had on August 2 allowed the Delhi government to go ahead with procurement of 500 SFBs, out of the 1,000 proposed to be bought, and had said that the high court would decide regarding the remaining buses.
It had permitted procurement of 500 SFBs as an interim measure to take care of "pressing needs" of commuters using public transport in the city, after the Delhi government assured that hydraulic lifts would be installed in the buses to make them accessible by disabled persons.
The AAP government, represented through additional standing counsel Sanjoy Ghose, had earlier urged the high court to permit procurement of 500 SFBs for Delhi, saying that these vehicles were primarily meant for rural areas on the city outskirts where the roads were poor.
Advocate Aman Panwar, appearing for Congress leader Ajay Maken who had also opposed the procurement, had said that according to the DTC itself, LFBs were more advanced and safer than SFBs.
Malhotra's counsel had contended that lack of good roads in the rural areas cannot be a reason for buying SFBs as there would be disabled persons in the villages and the government was responsible for ensuring good roads.
He had also argued that as per the government's harmonised guidelines of 2016, LFBs with ramps were required, instead of SFBs with hydraulic lifts.
The contention of the petitioner was opposed by the Delhi government and DTC which claimed that procurement of SFBs was a "dire need" as its fleet of buses was facing a 40 per cent shortfall.
The DTC had also said that currently 66 per cent of its fleet was disabled friendly and after procuring of the 500 SFBs, the percentage would still be more than 50 per cent.
It had said that procurement of LFBs was not feasible economically as they were costly and their annual maintenance cost, as quoted by the supplier, was "unrealistically high".
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