Re-registering vehicles older than 15 yrs set to be costlier
NEW DELHI: Renewing registration certificates of vehicles older than 15 years will cost up to eight times more from April across India, except the national capital region, where petrol and diesel powered vehicles are deemed deregistered after 15 and 10 years, respectively, according to an order by the ministry of road transport and highways.
From April 1, it will cost ₹5,000 to renew the registration of all 15-year-old cars, compared with the current rate of ₹600. For twowheelers, it will be ₹1,000 instead of ₹300. For imported cars, it will be ₹40,000 instead of ₹15,000.
A delay in renewing registrations of private vehicles will cost an additional ₹300 every month. The penalty for commercial vehicles will be ₹500 per month. The new rules also mandate that private vehicles older than 15 years will have to apply for renewal every five years.
At least 12 million vehicles in India, including those in the NCR, are eligible for scrapping, official data show. To make it easier to scrap old vehicles, the transport ministry has allowed the application to be filed online from anywhere in the country.
The cost of fitness tests of old transport and commercial vehivehicle cles will also rise from April. Transport authorities will charge ₹7,000 instead of ₹1,000 for taxis, and ₹12,500 instead of ₹1,500 for buses and trucks. A fitness certificate is mandatory for over eightyear-old commercial vehicles.
As per the rules laid down in various orders issued by the National Green Tribunal (2015) and the Supreme Court (2018), any registered diesel vehicle over 10 years old, and petrol vehicles over 15 years old cannot operate in NCR. Such vehicles are called “end of Iife” vehicles and driving them in Delhi is illegal and they cannot even be parked in public spaces.
By raising compliance fees, the
Centre hopes owners will choose to scrap their vehicles and buy modern ones that are less polluting. Air pollution is a serious problem in India, particularly in the cities, and vehicular emissions are one of the main contributors.
To make scrapping easier, the ministry on March 10 proposed amendments to its Registered Vehicle Scrapping Facility (RVSF) rules, which were first notified on September 25 last year.
Under draft Motor Vehicles (Registration and Functions of Vehicle Scrapping Facility Amendment) Rules, 2022 notified on Thursday, vehicle owners will now be able to apply digitally for scrapping.
“All applications for vehicle scrapping shall be submitted digitally. RVSFs will act as facilitation centres to help vehicle owners apply digitally to scrap their vehicles.
The RVSF shall also digitally verify through the Vahan portal that the hire-purchase, lease or hypothecation agreement in the certificate of registration of a motor vehicle has been duly discharged for the concerned vehicle; that there are no pending dues on the vehicle; and that the vehicle hasn’t been blacklisted.
If the vehicle fails any of these checks, the owner shall not be allowed to submit the digital application,” the draft notification stated.
Those applying to scrap their vehicles will have to upload a few documents that include a copy of PAN card, valid ID, address proof, photo ID, a cancelled cheque of the bank account of the owner and an undertaking from the owner acknowledging that all information furnished was true.
Once the application is submitted on the Vahan portal, it will be sent to the concerned regional transport office for a no dues certificate.
On receiving the clearance, the RVSF will accept the application and inform the owner to submit the vehicle for scrapping.