Pay more for your offences

We take you through the salient features of the new Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2016 that has been passed by the Lok Sabha

SO, THE RED BEACON THAT was often the bane of existence for the common road user will be gone come the first of May. Yet, it is the far less dramatic passing of the new Motor Vehicle (Amendment) Bill, 2016 by the Lok Sabha that is far more significant. With a view to improve road safety and reduce traffic violations, the new bill amends 68 of the 223 sections of the old Motor Vehicles Act with chapter 10 having been completely removed while 11 is being amended to simplify third party insurance claims.

We are of course no legal experts and therefore will leave the interpretation of the finer points of individual sections of the act to them. But what is crystal clear is that the administration is out for the blood of motorists who defy the law of the road in this country.

Penalties therefore have been increased significantly to act as a bigger deterrent to habitual offenders, or even first time offenders. The bill also proposes a multiplier prescribed by the state for

The new bill amends 68 of the 223 sections of the previous Motor Vehicles Act

repeated offenders, with penalties not less than one and not more than 10 times the original offence. Here’s a look at what they’ll fish out of our wallets if caught by the men in uniform on the wrong side of that legal line.

The bill will also allow for a facility to get your learning licence online, increase the validity of driving licences and scrap the requirement for educational qualifications for a transport licence.