Plans to relocate ARTO office to Jewar spark public outcry

NOIDA: Residents in Noida and Greater Noida have become a worried lot over the Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (Yeida) allotting 2,000 square metres of land to set up a permanent assistant regional transport office (ARTO) in Jewar following a request from UP transport department.

Like residents, transport department officials are also not in favour to shift the temporary office from Sector 33, Noida, to Jewar, fearing inconvenience to hundreds of people visiting this office for vehicle related or driving license work.

Noida residents want the office be built in Noida to help them avoid travelling 40 km for their concerned work. Similarly, residents and the transporters in Greater Noida want the two authorities to allot the permanent space at a central point, enabling people from across the district to visit with ease. They say Jewar falls on the other end of the district.

Rajiva Singh, president of Noida federation of apartment owners association, said that shifting ARTO office towards Aligarh defies logic. “Recently the UP transport department has made a motor driving training institute in densely populated Bisada (Dadri town) causing huge problems to people. Making a new driving license or renewal work is now a daunting task. Shifting the ARTO office to a remote area will be a double whammy,” he added.

Citizen group Active Citizen Team, Greater Noida, has written to the UP transport department that both the ARTO office and also the newly set up driving training school in Bisada be permanently set up in Greater Noida because it will be at equal distance for all citizens in Noida, Greater Noida, and Jewar.

Notably, around 1,500 people visit the ARTO office in Sector 33 daily. Shifting this office to Jewar is likely to affect residents in Noida, and Greater Noida. And if they want to get DL made or renewed then they have to visit Bisada village to undergo a driving test.

In view of the public demand, Uttar Pradesh transport commissioner BN Singh has written to district officials about land for driving training school and ARTO office building land that is located in urban areas instead of in remote area like Bisada.

“If they provide suitable land in Noida or Greater Noida in areas which are centrally located, we will set up an ARTO office and training school there. We want to set up the facility in a manner so that the citizens in two planned cities do not face any inconvenience. We hope suitable land will be identified soon,” said Singh.

District magisrate Maneesh Kumar Verma has directed the staff to identify government land that can be used for transport office and training school in Noida and the Noida authority is also on the lookout for the land. “We have sought minimum 10 acres and maximum 15 acres of land for training school. The administration is identifying the land in Sector 116, where we are yet to visit and finalise,” said Siyaram Verma, assistant regional transport officer (ARTO).

Noida authority CEO Lokesh M said that they are yet to take a decision on the issue. “We could not take the proposal related to this in our board meeting held in March. We will discuss it and decide,” he said.