MoRTH announces Vehicle Scrappage Policy

The Minister of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH), Nitin Gadkari has announced the Vehicle Scrappage Policy at Lok Sabha. Under the scrappage policy, he issued a draft notification to disallow re-registration of government vehicles older than 15 years without a fitness certificate will automatically lead to the cancellation of registration. The Ministry has invited suggestions or objections to its proposal for the subsequent 30 days, and if it is ready to sail smoothly, the rule is proposed to become effective from April 1, 2022.

Likewise, the timeline for personal vehicles is extended to 20 years whereas the vintage and classic cars will be left out from the purview of the new scrappage policy. Furthermore, fitness centres are going to be established throughout the country for making the process of scrapping vehicles easy.

What is for old car owners in vehicle scrappage policy?

For owners, who voluntarily choose for the scrappage of their vehicles over re-registration, will receive 4-6 percent of scrap value. In addition, a rebate of upto 25 percent road concession on road-tax for passenger vehicles and commercial vehicles. Also, MoRTH has also suggested an extra advantage of 5 percent to customers with a legitimate 'Certificate of Vehicle Scrapping' on buying a fresh vehicle. Then, the total benefits will be about 10-15 percent in exchange for the scrapped vehicle.

The policy will come into effect from October 1, 2021. As per notice, from April 1, 2022, the scrapping of government and PSU vehicles above 15 years of age are going to be undertaken. Compulsory fitness testing for heavy commercial vehicles at RTO will be effective from April 1, 2023. The compulsory fitness testing for other categories will come into effect in a phased manner from June 1, 2024.