Motor Vehicle Bill 2016 : Rs 10,000 fine for drunken driving, Rs 2,000 for over speeding

 

The bill, which seeks to amend nearly 30-year-old  Motor Vehicle Act 1988, also calls for 100 per cent e-governance and will cap maximum liability for  third party insurance at Rs 10 lakh in case of death in a motor accident. All efforts would be made to eliminate corruption in the sector, Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari said while replying to a discussion on the Motor Vehicle (Amendment) Bill, 2016, claiming that "no bogus driving licences would be made and there would be no theft of vehicles once there is e-governance."
 

The bill was passed by a voice vote after several opposition amendments were rejected, including one moved by a CPI(M) member on enhancing the compensation in case of accidents, was defeated by 37 votes in favour and 221 against. "The bill proposes a compensation of Rs 5 lakh. This is not the upper limit. After getting this amount (the affected family) can withdraw the case or appeal," he said.
 

"This (Rs 5 lakh) is being done to ensure that there are less court cases and immediate compensation is given ...," Gadkari said. 

 

Sharing my concluding remarks on consideration & passing of the Motor Vehicle (Amendment) bill in LokSabhahttps://t.co/URd8vlaNo2

— Nitin Gadkari (@nitin_gadkari) April 10, 2017

 

WHAT ELSE YOU NEED TO KNOW: 

 

#To 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. 

 

#Under the new system, every one will have to go to the licence issuing authority under a uniform procedure and if the licence is not issued in three days, the RTO will have to face action. A learner's licence can be availed online sitting at home.

 

#The minister also said that it would not be possible to increase the compensation in case of death to Rs 20 lakh as it would entail substantial hike in insurance premium. Referring to the members' concern over third party insurance, Gadkari said, "There is no upper ceiling in awarding compensation by Claims Tribunal." He also said that in accordance with the recommendations of standing committee the bill also has provision for payment of entire compensation by insurance companies.

 

#"There is a provision in the bill under which if holes are found on roads, DPR designer and contractor would be held accountable," Gadkari said, adding that the ministry would blacklist the contractor.

 

#Euro VI emission norms, Gadkari added, would be made mandatory from April 1, 2020.

 

#The Bill proposes offences committed by Juveniles.   The Guardian / owner shall be deemed to be guilty in cases of offences by the Juveniles and Juvenile to be tried under JJ Act. Registration of Motor Vehicle to be cancelled.

 

#It also provides specific timelines for processing of insurance claims. A ten fold increase has been made in the amount of compensation awarded under a simplified process of claims disbursal wherein the family of an accident victim would get compensation of Rs 5 lakh as settlement within four months of the accident. Presently it takes at least four to five years for an award.

 

#The bill provides for linking of driving licence and vehicle registration with Adhaar-based platform and heavy penalties for traffic violations.The bill also provides for Aadhaar-based verification for grant of online services including learner's licence. This would ensure integration of online services and also stop creation of duplicate licences.

 

#The Bill also proposes to mandate the automated fitness testing for the transport vehicles with effect from 1st October 2018.  This would reduce corruption in the Transport Department while improving the road worthiness of the vehicle.  The penalties are also proposed for deliberate violation of safety/environmental regulations as well as body builders and spare part suppliers.

 

#To 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. 

 

#To 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 use of Divyang.

 

#The important provisions include increase in compensation for Hit & Run cases from Rs. 25000 to Rs. 2 lakhs. It also has provision for payment of compensation upto Rs 10 lakh in road accidents fatalities.  

 

SEE FULL LIST BELOW 

 

 

WHAT THE GOVERNMENT HAS SAID

 

Stressing that any kind of corruption would not be tolerated in the transport sector, he said, "We will have to bring online governance to put an end to the corruption. 
Corruption would not be tolerated and we are firm on this." There should be uniformity in the rules concerning issuance of driving licences, the minister said, adding that through "e-governance, there would be provision of electronic registration."
 

The bill seeks to "save lives" by ushering in radical reforms in the motor vehicles law to slap heavy penalty on traffic violators, protecting good samaritans and making vehicle-makers responsible for design defects to cut road accidents. The basic aim of the bill is "to save human lives".

 

Observing that there was corruption at state check posts and the Centre was in touch with states to deal with the issue. The bill seeks to make services like issuance of licences totally transparent and online and provides for punitive action against officials in case of delay in issuance of the document to eligible applicants.
 

Gadkari expressed concern over a large number of road accidents due to drunk driving and said that the government was thinking of strict action against such people. Asserting that life was of paramount importance, he said the ministry was planning to come up with crash barriers on the roadside.The government, he said, has already 786 black spots across the country, which are accident prone. The minister said that the proposal on strengthening the network of trauma centres has also been received.

Stricter penalties have been proposed for high risk offences such as drunken driving, dangerous driving, overloading, non-adherence to safety norms by drivers (such as use of seat belt, helmets). The bill aims to provide for a national database of vehicles and driving licences that would help in safety and security and avoid malpractices.