New Driving
Licence Rules In India | The Motor Vehicles Bill for Road Safety: This article is based on the “The new Motor Vehicles bill
paves the way for safer roads” that appeared in The Hindu Business Line on 8th
August. It talks about the provisions of the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill,
2019 and their utility in making India’s Road safer. India sees more than five
lakh road accidents a year leading to 1.5 lakh deaths. According to the Union
Transport Minister, this could come down by half if the provisions of this Bill
are implemented. The Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2019 is based on the
recommendations of the Group of Transport Ministers (GoM) of States constituted
by the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways to address the issue of road
safety and to improve the access of the citizens while dealing with transport
departments. The amendments in the Bill mainly focus on issues relating to
improving road safety, citizens’ facilitation while dealing with the transport
department, strengthening rural transport, last mile connectivity and public
transport, automation and computerization and enabling online services.
Key Features of the bill Road
safety: Bill proposes to increase
penalties to act as a deterrent against traffic violations. Compensation for
road accident victims: Cashless treatment of road accident victims during the
golden hour (first 1 hour after accident). The minimum compensation for death
or grievous injury due to hit and run has been moved up substantially to ₹2
lakh and ₹50,000, respectively. Road Safety Board: The Bill provides for a
National Road Safety Board, to be created by the central government through a
notification. The Board will advise the central and state governments on all
aspects of road safety and traffic management. Protection of Good Samaritan: To
help road accident victims, Good Samaritan guidelines have been incorporated in
the Bill. They will not be liable for any civil or criminal action for any
injury to or death of an accident victim, caused due to their negligence in
providing assistance to the victim.
Motor Vehicle Accident
Fund: The Bill requires the central
government to constitute a Motor Vehicle Accident Fund, to provide compulsory
insurance cover to all road users in India. Third-party insurance terms are
friendlier with no cap on liability of insurers and quicker claims processing.
To reduce scope for manipulation and corruption in transport departments,
vehicle fitness tests will be automated and driving tests, computerised. Also,
the driver training process for commercial driving will be strengthened, and
more training schools set up. Recall of vehicles: The Bill allows the central
government to order for recall of motor vehicles if a defect in the vehicle may
cause damage to the environment, or the driver, or other road users.
National Transportation Policy: The central government may develop a National
Transportation Policy, in consultation with state governments. Taxi
aggregators: The Bill defines aggregators as digital intermediaries or market
places which can be used by passengers to connect with a driver for transportation
purposes (taxi services). These aggregators will be issued licenses by state.
Further, they must comply with the Information Technology Act, 2000.
Issues and challenges: There will
be implementation challenges at the all-India level. Road transport being a
subject on the Concurrent List, State governments are also free to make their
own laws and rules. Some states feel that the amendment infringes upon the
rights of the states. For effective monitoring of traffic violations and
accidents and ensuring that the perpetrators don’t go scot-free, electronic
surveillance is essential that needs installation of CCTVs, Speed guns, and
other equipment. This could involve substantial investment, and it is not clear
who will bear the cost. Laxity of vehicle-manufacturers in implementing safety
features is also a concern.
Road safety Initiatives in India Ministry of Road
Transport and highways took several steps in the past to improve road safety:
National Road Safety Policy outlines various policy measures such as promoting
awareness, establishing road safety information data base, encouraging safer
road infrastructure including application of intelligent transport, enforcement
of safety laws etc. National Road Safety Council as the apex body to take
policy decisions in matters of road safety. A dashboard for road accident data,
through which people can access related data and other information both
state-wise and the national averages, has been introduced. Comic books Swachha
Safar and Surakshit Yatra have been released, with an aim to create awareness
among children about road safety.
VAHAN (an ICT-based solution for vehicle registration) and
SARATHI (for licencing) app to curb malpractices in issuing licences and
vehicle registration.
Setu Bharatam programme to make all national highways free of
railway crossings by 2019. Tamil Nadu model of integrated data-driven road
safety initiatives: the Supreme Court-appointed three-member road safety
committee led by Justice (retd) KS Radhakrishnan praised Tamil Nadu’s efforts
in reducing fatalities in road accidents. NCRB data reveals that road accident
deaths in TN came down in 2018 by 24.39%, the biggest decrease recorded in the
country.
Way forward Strict and effective enforcement of the amended rules in
Motor Vehicle Act would surely help in curbing road-accident related deaths in
India. The central and state governments should work out proper plans to
effectively implement the rules. State governments should ensure transparency
and provide a hassle-free experience for citizens at the Regional Transport
Offices. Vehicle manufacturers should update their technologies and adopt the
best global practices regarding vehicles’ and passengers’ safety.
Simultaneously, the rise of the Internet of Things-enabled, connected cars in
India, which international auto majors are heavily investing in currently, can
give a digital edge to road safety. With an array of embedded sensors informing
drivers of other on-road cars, onboard analytics can give them real-time
driving suggestions to avoid collisions. The unprecedented pace of construction
and infrastructure improvement is one more link in the journey to safer roads.
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