Women Drivers, VIPs Exempt From Odd-Even Rule; 'I'm Not' Says Arvind Kejriwal

New Delhi: Women drivers, women driving with children below 12, CNG cars and a long list of 'VIPs' will not have to follow the odd-even formula that will be enforced in Delhi in the first 15 days of the New Year. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal will be an exception in the VIP list.

"My family and I are not exempted from anything," he announced today.

Those who violate the odd-even rule will be fined Rs 2,000.

The exemption list includes the President, Vice President, the Prime Minister, governors, the Chief Justice of India, the Lok Sabha Speaker, Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman, Union Ministers, Leaders of Opposition in Parliament, all chief ministers except for Delhi's, Supreme Court judges, the Deputy Speaker and emergency vehicles.

Two-wheelers, vehicles with defence ministry number plates, pilot cars, those protected by the elite Special Protection Group and embassy cars with CD number plates will also be kept out of the ban. The rule will also not apply to public transport.

Asked how long the formula would last, Mr Kejriwal replied: "This can never be permanent."

VIPs, he said, could voluntarily follow the rule. "The Chief Justice of India had praised it earlier, I would expect him to follow it. I wrote to the PM, if he appeals to his ministers..." 

Earlier this month, the Chief Minister had announced that he, his ministers and all government officials would follow the new rule.

"If people are not too inconvenienced, if public transport has enough capacity, we will implement it in stages. If people accept it and follow it widely, those who violate it will be fined," Mr Kejriwal said.

The government plans to run 6,000 more buses to accommodate those who can't drive their cars on a day.

Nearly 10 lakh private cars are expected to stay off Delhi roads because of the plan that was announced soon after the court likened Delhi to a "gas chamber" and ordered the government to take steps to fight the critical pollution levels in the city.

"This scheme is for you, for your kids. We are all coughing. It is for the environment," Mr Kejriwal said.