Following a lengthy discussion, the Rajya Sabha passed the Motor Vehicles Amendment Bill 2019 on Wednesday. The new bill was passed to amend the provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act of 1988 which was tabled in the house back in 2017, but was not cleared in the upper house and eventually got lapsed with the dissolution of the 16th Lok Sabha.
Union Minister for Road Transport and National Highways, Nitin Gadkari earlier tabled the 2019 Bill in Lok Sabha where it was passed with a voice vote. Among the major changes, the new bill calls for a substantial increase in fines for a few offences. Among these, drunken driving, which called for a penalty of Rs 2000 will now cost Rs 10,000 according to the new bill. Similarly, driving without license which previously cost Rs 500 in fine will now cost Rs 5,000 with the new bill.
Other notable inclusions in the bill comes in the form of a fine of Rs 10,000 for not giving way to emergency vehicles and an equal penalty despite disqualification. The proposals for the new bill are based on the recommendations of transport ministers from 18 states, which were vetted by the Standing Committee of Parliament. Additionally, the driving training process has also been strengthened under the new bill. To help road accident victims, Good Samaritan guidelines have been incorporated in the Bill.
The provisions also include that guardian/owner will be deemed to be guilty in case of road offence by juveniles while registration of the vehicle will be cancelled. As per the new provisions "guardian/owner shall be deemed to be guilty and there will be a penalty of Rs 25,000 with three-year imprisonment and cancellation of registration of the Motor Vehicle".
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