Baalu for uniform road tax structure in country

Shimla, Sep 22 (UNI) Union Minister for Shipping, Road Transport and Highways T R Baalu today stressed the need for uniform road tax structure in the country, saying his ministry is in collaboration with the various state governments to devise a uniform structure.

Addressing the ninth meeting of the National Road Safety Council and 31st meeting of the Transport Development Council here, he said a mechanism could be devised where policy makers of the state transport departments and Union Transport Ministry could work together to bring about uniform road tax structure in the country.

Expressing concern over the rising number of road accidents in the country, Mr Baalu said the Centre, the state governments and the bodies responsible for administering road regulations should play an active role in spreading awareness about road safety.

He said Health Ministry would prepare a scheme for upgrading hospitals around national highways to provide timely help to the victims of road accidents under the eleventh five-year plan.

Referring to the congestion on the roads, he said the state should take adequate measures to bolster public transport by rationalisation of tax structure, which at present, favoured personal vehicles as compared to public transport.

The Union Minister said the improvement in the public transport would also help the rural people on constitute a majority of the population.

Stressing the need to provide barrier free movement to commercial vehicles, he said due to multiplicity of checks, vehicles on state check posts were detained, adversely affecting the production of commercial vehicles.

Speaking on the occasion, Union Minister of State for Shipping, Road Transport and Highways K H Muniyappa said efforts should be made to make loop roads in the hilly states where construction of four-lane roads was difficult.

While one road would be used for traveling from one direction to other, the other would be used for the return journey, he said, adding that construction of cement roads in the hill areas could be another alternative since they had much longer life than the bitumen roads.

Issues like overloading, multiplicity of checks on national highways, national database for driving licences and registration certificates, promotion of public transport system, mechanical fitness of vehicles and pollution control were discussed at the Transport Development Council.

While the National Road Safety Council agenda included removal of encroachments, implementation of Control of National highways, strengthening institutional mechanisms in states and highway patrol.

State Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh also addressed the inaugural session, which was attended by transport ministers of Assam, Bihar, Delhi, HP, Kerala, Orissa, Nagaland and Rajasthan.

UNI AS PS SK GC1939