Auto retail industry asks govt to make road taxes uniform

New Delhi, Sep 19 (UNI) The automobile retail industry today urged the Central Government to allow direct registration of new cars, and make road taxes uniform throughout the country.

''The current system of registration through state Regional Transport Offices (RTOs) is a cumbersome one and delays vehicle registration between different states. Therefore, we urge the government to allow direct registration of cars across the country as done in Delhi,'' Apollo Tyres Chairman and FICCI immediate Past President Onkar S Kanwar said here.

He was speaking at a seminar on 'Auto Retail - Framework for Growth.' Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways and Shipping T R Baalu, in his address, informed that in order to deal with the issue of efficient registration procedure, his ministry has already taken initiative for computerisation of all RTOs in the country.

''Under this, all the records will be put on computers that will facilitate uniformity in vehicle records across the country and ultimately expedite the vehicle registration and re-registration,'' he added.

The industry also proposed that a scrapping policy should be announced that will define age of all vehicles, including commercial ones, keeping in consideration the safety and pollution standards.

Allotment of land for auto malls and auto zones in city/town development plans and setting up of more ITIs to meet the increasing demand of trained personnel were also sought by the auto leaders.

Mr Baalu assured the leaders that the government will examine their demands and will take the necessary actions.

According to industry estimates, auto retail is a significant part of the automobile industry and contributes more than 40 per cent of the investments while contributing four per cent to the exchequer.

In the next five years, the auto industry will invest Rs 50,000 crore with expectations to clock 10-12 per cent growth in the current fiscal.

In his address, Mr Baalu appealed to the automobile manufactureres to give highest priority to road safety by providing air bags, anti-collision devices, fatigue alarms, anti-lock braking systems and modernising vehicles by installing equipments to track vehicle through GPS technology.

The minister's caution comes in the wake of staggering number of fatalities in Indian roads. In 2004, over 92,000 people were killed in more than four lakh reported road accidents, involving a huge social cost of 2-3 per cent of GDP.

He also asked advertisement makers not to highlight overspeeding on roads.

''If advertisements do not glamorise over-speeding, rather emphasise on safety norms like wearing of helmets and seat belts, it will help spread the road safety message and bring about a reduction in accidents and fatalities,'' he said.

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