Representational Image | Photo: Mathrubhumi
Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala government has decided not to scrap KSRTC buses older than 15 years as mandated by the vehicle scrappage policy. The state government will issue a special order to override the union government's decision to cancel the registration of these buses. Only the KSRTC buses will benefit from the relaxation. All other vehicles of the state and union governments will be withdrawn from the roads.
The Indian government had previously introduced a policy for scrapping private diesel vehicles older than 10 years and petrol vehicles older than 15 years. Recently, the government has expanded this policy to include government-owned vehicles and buses that are older than 15 years, with implementation starting on April 1, 2023.
The state government has resorted to relaxations for KSRTC due to the shortage of buses in the corporation. According to the VAHAN portal, 1,622 KSRTC vehicles and 884 government vehicles are currently blacklisted in the state. The ministry has cancelled the registration of the blacklisted vehicles.
Also Read
According to the vehicle scrappage policy, 245 currently operating KSRTC vehicles are included on the blacklist. However, the state government has decided to continue the service of these buses.
As per the Motor Vehicles Act, vehicle registration falls under the ambit of the state government. Hence, the Kerala government has inferred that the VAHAN software has no authority to cancel the registration of the vehicles.