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Describing the fines imposed by the new Motor Vehicles Act as very harsh, the West Bengal Chief Minister- Mamata Banerjee said that the state will not be implementing it. This has been decided as the steep fines imposed under the Act would overburden the people financially.
The state is going with the ‘’Safe Drive Save Life’’ campaign and following this campaign, the number of accidents in the state has reduced. She further said that her government had raised objections with the provisions and the intended fines to be imposed, but the Act was still passed by both the Houses in July. Since transport is a state subject, the Centre should not unilaterally make decisions.
The heavy fines have even been recorded to be more than Rs. 50,000 in some instances. The Delhi police on Tuesday issued a challan amounting to Rs. 1.41 Lakh to a truck driver for the vehicle being overloaded.
She added that solutions to any problems shall be sought on humanitarian grounds. The decision of not implementing the Act has been taken keeping the financial burden of the people in mind. There are people who are poor and cannot afford to pay such huge fines.
This is not about Bengal alone; several states have raised a concern about the steep fines. Gujarat has implemented the Act but with a huge reduction in the proposed fines. For example, while the Act proposes to impose a fine of Rs. 1,000 for triple riding and driving without a seat belt, Gujarat traffic police would collect fines amounting to Rs. 100 and Rs. 500 only respectively. There has been as much as a 90% reduction in the fines to be imposed in Gujarat.
Gujarat CM, Vijay Rupani said that the amounts mentioned in the Act are the lower and upper limit. The state government can make changes in the provisions owing to the federal structure of Indian government conferred by the Indian Constitution.
However, even after the states have raised concerns about the steep fines under the Act, the Union Transport Minister- Nitin Gadkari has made statements justifying the same and has also appealed the states not to make a reduction in the fines under the Act.
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