Friendly to the environment, they will give Agra's
                 badly-polluted air some respite to halt the
                 monument's erosion

                 By NIRMAL GHOSH
                      INDIA CORRESPONDENT

                 AGRA -- An environmentally-friendly rickshaw,
                 designed in New York, is now plying the streets around
                 the Taj Mahal, one of the seven wonders of the world,
                 the beauty of which has been damaged by pollution.

                 The monument receives more than two million visitors a
                 year but can accommodate many more if the city of
                 Agra was better organised; roads are bad, the complex
                 itself does not have a decent public toilet, and the city's
                 various historical sites are not adequately signposted.
                 Out of concern for the Taj, which has been suffering
                 erosion because of the pollution in Agra and its
                 surrounds, the Supreme Court has banned taxis and
                 buses within a 4-km radius of the monument -- so
                 tourists have had to depend on rickshaws.

                 The new rickshaws, a result of cooperation between
                 Delhi-based Asian Institute for Transportation and
                 Development and New York-based Institute for
                 Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP), with
                 US government funding, are fitted with gears that make
                 it easier for the rickshaw drivers to pedal uphill and
                 negotiate Agra's chaotic, traffic-choked streets.

                 "The bicycle is the most efficient mode of transportation
                 in the world. Zero pollution, high cost-effectiveness and
                 supportive of better health and the environment" said
                 ITDP vice-president Matteo Marignoni.

                 According to reports, there are plans to introduce the
                 new cycle rickshaws all over India.

                 There are more than six million rickshaw operators in
                 India, who earn less than 100 rupees (S$3.80) a day in
                 their backbreaking occupation.

                 An Agra rickshaw operator, who give his name as
                 "John", said he had invested 5,500 rupees (S$209) in
                 the new rickshaw, which he said was a vast
                 improvement.

                 Geared Up Against Pollution

                  AGRA rickshaw operator "John" gave a thumbs up to
                 the New York-designed rickshaws.

                  Environmentally friendly, they are also 20 kg lighter,
                 compared to the original version.

                  The gears reduce pedalling-energy requirements by
                 about 17 per cent.

                  The rickshaws are made from steel with a longer and
                 lower chassis that promotes stability.

                  The gears are available separately, in case those with
                 older rickshaws want to maintain hem and just add the
                 gears.

                                      Adapted from The Straits Times, 8 Jan 2000.