Punjab Govt hikes tax on luxury buses

Rajmeet Singh

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 16

After targeting private transporters illegally extending their route permits, causing loss of crores of rupees to the state exchequer, the Punjab Government has now increased the motor vehicles tax on super integral coaches (luxury buses), mostly owned by the Badal family.

In a recent order, the motor vehicle tax of the super integral coaches has been increased by almost three times, from Rs 5.60 paise per km/per day (per vehicle) to Rs 14.50 paise per km/per day. On the other hand, the tax of ordinary buses has been slightly decreased, from Rs 2.69 paise per km/per day (per vehicle) to Rs 2.56 paise per km/per day.

Besides other transporters, the bus companies owned by the Badals plied super integral coaches from different towns in Punjab to Chandigarh under a reciprocal agreement with the Chandigarh Administration, signed during the tenure of the previous Akali government in 2008.

“A total of 73 permits of integral coaches had been issued in the state. Of these, most of the permits belong to transport companies owned by the Badals,” Transport Minister Amrinder Raja Warring said.

The minister said in the monopolistic luxury buses business, the road tax had not been increased. “The department has also issued show-cause notice to the stakeholders under the inter-state reciprocal agreement with the Chandigarh Administration to run buses between the UT and different towns in Punjab,” said the minister.

JS Grewal, general secretary, Small-Scale District Bus Operators Association, said while regulating the big private players, the small bus operators were at the receiving end and needed urgent measures by the state government to rehabilitate them.

“The government needs to exempt the motor vehicles tax from January 2021 to March 31, 2022, on operators having a fleet of buses not more than 10,” he said.