Vehicle scrapping policy to offer about 5 pc rebate on new cars: Gadkari

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, May 18

Vehicle manufacturers will offer a five percent discount while selling a new vehicle against a scrapping certificate, said Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari on Thursday, announcing the Vehicle Scrappage Policy or the Voluntary Vehicle-Fleet Modernisation Programme in Lok Sabha.

Under the new policy, owners of old vehicles will get strong incentives to scrap old and unfit vehicles. “We have issued an advisory to all vehicle manufacturers to offer 5 per cent discount while selling a new vehicle against a scrapping certificate,” he told the Lok Sabha.

In case of failure to get a fitness certificate, commercial vehicles will be de-registered after 15 years. Private vehicles will be de-registered after 20 years if found unfit or in case of a failure to renew registration certificates, the Minister said.

The policy is in the interest of a clean environment and rider and pedestrian safety and creating an eco-system for phasing out of unfit and polluting vehicles, Gadkari said.

“The objectives of the policy are to reduce the population of old and defective vehicles, achieve a reduction in vehicular air pollutants to fulfil India’s climate commitments, improve road and vehicular safety, achieve better fuel efficiency, formalise the currently informal vehicle scrapping industry, and boost the availability of low-cost raw materials for automotive, steel and electronics industry,” Gadkari added.

The criteria of fitness will be through Automated Fitness Centres (AFCs) in case of commercial vehicles and non-renewal of registration in case of private vehicles.

The Ministry will promote the setting up of AFCs on a PPP model by the state government, private sector, automobile companies, etc., Gadkari said.

All vehicles of the central government, state government, municipal corporations, Panchayats, State Transport Undertakings, Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) and autonomous bodies with the Union and state governments may be de-registered and scrapped after 15 years from the date of registration.

The tentative date for scrappage of government and PSUs vehicles above 15 years of age is April 1, 2022.

The new scrappage policy was proposed by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her Budget speech last month.