Rajya Sabha passes Motor Vehicles Amendment Bill 2019

NEW DELHI: The Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2019 was passed by Rajya Sabha today. Speaking on the occasion SNitin Gadkari, Minister of Road Transport & Highways and MSME thanked the Members of the House and said that this was a matter of great happiness for him.nnHe said the much needed amendments will improve road safety, facilitate citizens in their dealings with transport departments, strengthen rural transport, public transport and last mile connectivity through automation, computerization and online services.nnThe Minister reiterated that the Bill would, in no way, encroach upon the powers and authorities of the states. He said the Bill would rather empower the states. He added that the Bill will provide an efficient, safe and corruption free transport system in the country.nnThe Bill has been passed with three Government amendments and will need to go back to Lok Sabha. The Lok Sabha had already passed the Bill on the 23rd of July 2019.nnThe Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2019 is based on the recommendations of the Group of Transport Ministers (GoM) of States constituted by the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways to address the issue of road safety and to improve the facilitation of the citizens while dealing with transport departments.nnThe GoM was headed by Yoonus Khan, the then Transport Minister of Rajasthan, and had 18 State Transport Ministers from different political parties as members. On the basis of recommendations of the GoM and other pressing requirements, the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways introduced the Motor Vehicle (Amendment) Bill 2016. This, along with amendments, was passed by Lok Sabha on 10th April, 2017.nnThe Bill as passed by Lok Sabha was introduced in Rajya Sabha and was referred to the Select Committee of the Rajya Sabha on 08.08.2017. The Select Committee presented its report to the Parliament on 22nd December, 2017. The Bill was pending in the Rajya Sabha and lapsed with the dissolution of the 16th Lok Sabha.nnThe amendments in the Bill mainly focus on issues relating to improving road safety, citizens? facilitation while dealing with the transport department, strengthening rural transport, last mile connectivity and public transport, automation and computerization and enabling online services. Some of the important areas of amendment are as follows:nnRoad SafetynnIn the area of road safety, the Bill proposes to increase penalties to act as deterrent against traffic violations. Stricter provisions are being proposed in respect of offences like juvenile driving, drunken driving, driving without licence, dangerous driving, over-speeding, overloading etc. Stricter provisions for helmets have been introduced along with provisions for electronic detection of violations. Penalty regarding motor vehicles is to be increased by 10 % every year.nnProposed Amendments in Various Penalties under Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill ? 2019n

n nnVehicle FitnessnnThe Bill mandates automated fitness testing for vehicles. This would reduce corruption in the transport department while improving the road worthiness of the vehicle. Penalty has been provided for deliberate violation of safety/environmental regulations as well as body builders and spare part suppliers. The process for testing and certification for automobiles is proposed to be regulated more effectively. The testing agencies issuing automobile approvals have been brought under the ambit of the Act and standards will be set for motor vehicle testing institutes.The Bill also provides for compulsory recall of defective vehicles and power to examine irregularities of vehicle companies.nnRecall of VehiclesnnThe Bill allows the central government to order for recall of motor vehicles if a defect in the vehicle may cause damage to the environment, or the driver, or other road users. The manufacturer of the recalled vehicle will be required to: (i) reimburse the buyers for the full cost of the vehicle, or (ii) replace the defective vehicle with another vehicle with similar or better specifications.nnRoad Safety BoardnnThe Bill provides for a National Road Safety Board, to be created by the central government through a notification. The Board will advise the central and state governments on all aspects of road safety and traffic management including standards of motor vehicles, registration and licensing of vehicles, standards for road safety, and promotion of new vehicle technology.nnProtection of Good SamaritannnTo help road accident victims, Good Samaritan guidelines have been incorporated in the Bill. The Bill defines a Good Samaritan as a person who renders emergency medical or non-medical assistance to a victim at the scene of an accident, and provides rules to prevent harassment of such a person.nnCashless Treatment during Golden HournnThe Bill provides for a scheme for cashless treatment of road accident victims during golden hour.nnThird Party InsurancennThe Bill has included the driver?s attendant in 3rd Party insurance. re will be no cap on liability of insurers. There will be a 10 time increase in insurance compensation, from Rs 50, 000 to Rs 5 lakh. Claim process has been simplified. Insurance firms have to pay claims within a month, if the victim?s family agree to accept Rs 5 lakh compensation. The Bill also increases the minimum compensation for hit and run cases from Rs 25,000 to two lakh rupees in case of death, and from Rs 12,500 to Rs 50,000 in case of grievous injury.nnMotor Vehicle Accident FundnnThe Bill requires the central government to constitute a Motor Vehicle Accident Fund, to provide compulsory insurance cover to all road users in India. It will be utilised for: treatment of persons injured in road accidents as per the golden hour scheme, compensation to representatives of a person who died in a hit and run accident, compensation to a person grievously hurt in a hit and run accident, and compensation to any other persons as prescribed by the central government.nnThis Fund will be credited through: payment of a nature notified by the central government, a grant or loan made by the central government, balance of the Solatium Fund (existing fund under the Act to provide compensation for hit and run accidents),or any other source as prescribed the central government.nnImproving Services using e-GovernancennImproving delivery of services to the stakeholders using e-Governance is one of the major focuses of this Bill. This includesnnProvision for online driving licenses.nThe Bill provides for online Learners Licence with mandatory online identity verification Driving test will be computerized to avoid fake D.L. The Bill will bring transparency in RTO offices. Commercial licenses will be valid upto five instead of three years. Application for renewal can be made one year prior to or after licence lapses. Driver Training Schools will be opened so that more efficient drivers may be available.nnProcess of Vehicle RegistrationnTo improve the registration process for new vehicles, registration at the end of the dealer is being enabled and restrictions have been imposed on temporary registration. The Minister has however said that state transport departments can inspect the vehicles at dealers end .nnTo bring harmony of the registration and licensing process, it is proposed to create National Register for Driving Licence and National Register for Vehicle registration through ?Vahan? & ?Sarathi? platforms. This will facilitate uniformity of the process across the country.nnDrivers TrainingnThe driving training process has been strengthened enabling faster issuance of transport licenses. This will help in reducing the shortage of commercial drivers in the country. More and more drivers training schools and vehicle fitness centres will be openednnTo facilitate transport solutions for Divyang, the bottlenecks have been removed in respect of grant of driving licenses as well as alterations in the vehicles to make it fit for their use .nnReforms in Transportation SystemnnDevelopment of integrated Transport System will be possible from the National Transportation Policy. This will also enhance the powers of the State Governments, provide better last mile connectivity, rural transport etc.nnTaxi aggregators:nnThe Bill defines aggregators as digital intermediaries or market places which can be used by passengers to connect with a driver for transportation purposes (taxi services). The Bill provides guidelines for Aggregators. At present there are no rules in many states for regulating aggregators, taxis etc.