New Motor Vehicle amendment act will bring strict rules for the vehicle users, all fines are shot up
With the formation of a new government, a new Motor Vehicle amendment bill has been passed in Lok Sabha. This amendment bill is passed to change provisions in the original Motor Vehicle Act of 1988. Honorable Speaker passed the bill on 23rd-July-2019 on the basis of a voice vote in the Lower House.
Last time when this same bill was passed in Lok Sabha in 2017, it could not get through Rajya Sabha. Further, it lapsed with the dissolution of 16th Lok Sabha. In 2019, the Motor Vehicle Amendment bill had been tabled by Union Minister for Road and Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari. This bill has been focused on stricter penalties for traffic rules violations.
The new Motor Vehicle Amendment bill is also working on a system to offer cashless treatment of victims of road mishaps. This will be done after an hour of the road accident because it is a critical time window when a victim requires immediate medical help. On the other hand, a compensation of Rs 2 lakh will be provided to the hit-and-run cases. This amount has been increased from Rs 25,000. A Motor Vehicle Accident Fund will provide cover to victims of accidents. Also, if a juvenile is involved in a road incident, his/her parents/guardians will be held accountable unless proven innocent.
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The new amendment bill also mentions crediting the person/people instead of harassing the one who comes forward to help victims of road incidents. Speaking about road safety, the new bill introduces higher penalties for offenses like overspeeding, racing on the public roads, overloading as well as drunk driving. Not to mention that, dangerous driving and also not wearing seat-belts while driving will attract suspension of the license.
In addition to all these changes, all road users will get compulsory insurance for some kind of accidents. However, there will be a claim time limit of six months. The Government is also developing a new medium as well as long term framework under which an integrated multi-modal transport system will be realized. This network will offer seamless connectivity across urban as well as rural areas.
List of changes in New Motor Vehicle Amendment Bill
| Offense/Section | Old Penalty | New Penalty |
| General (177) | Rs 100 | Rs 500 |
| Road Rules Violation (new 177A) | Rs 100 | Rs 500 |
| Traveling without Ticket (178) | Rs 200 | Rs 500 |
| Disobedience of Orders of Authority (179) | Rs 500 | Rs 2,000 |
| Unauthorized use of Vehicles without Licence (180) | Rs 1000 | Rs 5,000 |
| Driving without Licence (181) | Rs 500 | Rs 5,000 |
| Driving without Qualification (182) | Rs 500 | Rs 10,000 |
| Oversized Vehicles (182B) | New | Rs 5,000 |
| Over Speeding (183) | Rs 400 | Rs 1,000 |
| Dangerous Driving (184) | Rs 1000 | Up to Rs 5,000 |
| Drunken Driving (185) | Rs 2000 | Rs 10,000 |
| Speeding/Racing (189) | Rs 500 | Rs 5,000 |
| Vehicles without Permit (192A) | Up to Rs 5,000 | Up to Rs 10,000 |
| Aggregators (violation of licensing conditions) (193) | New | Rs 25,000 to Rs 1,00,000 |
| Overloading (194) | Rs 2,000 and Rs 1,000 per extra tonne | Rs 20,000 and Rs 2,000 per extra tonne |
| Overloading of Passengers (194A) | New | Rs 1,000 per extra passenger |
| Not Wearing Seat Belt (194B) | Rs 100 | Rs 1,000 |
| Overloading of two-wheelers (194C) | Rs 100 | Rs 2,000 + Disqualification of Licence for 3 months |
| Not providing a way for emergency vehicles (194E) | New | Rs 10,000 |
| Driving without Insurance (196) | Rs 1,000 | Rs 2,000 |
| Offenses by Juveniles (199) | New | Guardian/Owner shall be deemed guilty. Rs 25,000 fine with 3 years imprisonment. Juvenile to be tried under JJ Act. Registration of vehicle to be canceled. |
| Power of officers to impound documents (206) | New | Suspension of Driving Licence under sections 183, 184, 185, 189, 190, 194C, 194D, 194E |
| Offenses committed by enforcing authorities (210B) | New | Twice the Penalty under the relevant section |
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