New Delhi (NVI): Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman today announced a voluntary vehicle scrappage policy in Union Budget 2021-22, to phase out old and unfit vehicles to control air pollution.
While presenting the Budget, the Finance Minister stated that, “We are separately announcing a voluntary vehicle scrapping policy to phase out old and unfit vehicles.”
“This will help encourage fuel-efficient and environment-friendly vehicles, thereby reducing vehicular pollution and oil import bills.”
However, the policy aims to reduce air pollution by take out the older and polluting vehicles from Indian roads and send them to the scrapyard and replace them by new vehicles.
Sitharaman further mentioned that personal vehicles will have to undergo a fitness test after 20 years from the date of registration, while the same for commercial vehicles will be 15 years.
The further details of a voluntary vehicle scrapping policy will be announced soon by the Ministry Of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) to phase out old vehicles, she added.
After the announcement of the Finance Minister, Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari welcomed the voluntary scrappage policy and said that declaration of the details of the policy will be done within next 15 days, the Ministry of Transport said in a statement.
Gadkari said the policy would cover an estimated 51 lakh light motor vehicles (LMV) that are above 20 years of age, while another 34 lakh LMVs are above 15 years, the statement added.
-RJV
