Registered facilities to verify vehicle records digitally before scrapping

The proposed vehicle scrappage draft policy by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) indicates that the vehicles to be scrapped have to be checked and verified for the records by the registered scrapping facilities. The registered vehicle scrappage facilities must verify the vehicle records for no pending dues and no record of blacklisting by regional transport authorities says the draft notification. The notification said that the verification will have to be done from MoRTH's ‘Vahan’ database. The particular vehicle can be scrapped only after the verification is done.

The draft notification says that the checks include the surrender of hire-purchase, lease or hypothecation agreement of the vehicle, no criminal record against the vehicle in records of the National Crime Records Bureau, no pending dues on the vehicle, and no record of blacklisting of the vehicle by regional transport authorities. It also said that applications for vehicles failing any of the checks shall not be submitted. Also, the draft notification has proposed that all the vehicle scrapping applications shall be submitted digitally and RVSFs will act as facilitation centres.

The move is claimed to make the vehicle scrappage policy and process transparent for all the stakeholders of this system. The draft notification has also proposed the introduction of a transfer certificate of deposit to ensure the vehicle owners obtaining the certificate of deposit through electronic trading have digital proof of transaction. The Certificate of Deposit is supposed to be a necessary and sufficient documentation for the vehicle owner to avail incentives and benefits for purchasing a new vehicle. The validity of this certificate could be two years from the date of issuance.

The Indian government launched National Vehicle Scrappage Policy in August last year. The government said that it would help in phasing out unfit and polluting vehicles. Also, this would promote a circular economy. The metals from scrapped vehicles can be recycled and used by the auto industry again, which would reduce the cost of raw materials for the manufacturers.

Under the vehicle scrappage policy, the central government had said the states and Union Territories (UTs) will provide up to 25 per cent tax rebate on road tax for vehicles that are purchased after scrapping old vehicles. The vehicle scrappage policy will come into effect from 1st April 2022.