Bengaluru: The new Motor Vehicles(Amendment) Bill, 2016 now being debated by Parliament, may only lead to more corruption among law enforcement agencies and do little to rein in insurance agencies and road builders, fears the Indian Foundation of Transport Research and Training.
Voicing its concerns in a letter to the chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture, the research organisation said many of the provisions of the Bill, including capping the liability of insurance companies at Rs 5 lakh, and of road builders at Rs 1 lakh, and upping the penalty for drunken driving, could give rise to more corruption.
It warned that road-building firms that made millions, may now be able to get away by paying a penalty of a mere Rs 1 lakh for poor road design. And while it accepted that the penalties for drunken driving were necessary as a deterrent, it feared that in practice they could lead to more corruption.
Also, opposing the issue of driving licence on a mere so-called Competence Test and doing away with the requirement of an educational qualification for acquiring it, it said, “The fact remains that CV drivers on highways should be educated if they are to be trained in handling vehicles fitted with modern gadgets.”
Deploring that the Bill only entertained the greed of transporters when the country was filled with unemployed 12th standard pass youth and graduates, it said, “The very soul of the Bill is being destroyed to meet the greed of powerful business stakeholders like road builders, transporters and even auto makers.”
