[StarrySky]

Originally Posted by srishiva

What are they testing ? Testing Human body is not that costly. Isnt the testing limited to pollution only ?

Quoting from this article:

Scrappage Policy: Fitness Tests
At the moment cars which are over 15 years old need to go through a test. This in India is called the ‘CF’ or Certificate of Fitness test. This test happens at local RTOs and is carried out by officials. The test requires the vehicle to have mechanical fitness. The checks include the operation of lights, indicators, brake lights, brakes, suspension and body among others. Unfortunately in our country the test is subjective in nature and many vehicles pass them without worry. However things are going to change now. The MoRTH is going to establish automated systems which will check operation of vehicles. These modern machines will be pre-calibrated and hence should ensure that only those vehicles truly fit re given a certificate.

With the fitness tests becoming automated, it might become much harder to pass these fitness tests and the owner may need to fix any issues before the car can pass the tests. This could push up the actual cost of passing the tests. This cost could be what the Rushlane article is speculating about and not the testing fee itself.

[sreeharipv]

Automated fitness test? I'll believe it when I see it. It'll be a very difficult system to implement due to the subjective nature of fitness.

[Dry Ice]

Originally Posted by StarrySky

With the fitness tests becoming automated, it might become much harder to pass these fitness tests

Unfortunately automated doesn't mean anything in our country. The PUC checks are supposedly "automated" in NCR, with the whole OTP shenanigans as well. But if you push the right buttons a car failing this check can pass with flying colours.

We are masters at finding and exploiting loopholes. I just wish the enforcement is also given due thought, after setting up these "automated test centres".

[rajshenoy]

Originally Posted by COMMUTER

At the interest of better emission control, it is high time that the manufacturers be forced to sell the engines separately in a crate. This will enable the customers to buy newer engines for their car which will help reduce emissions.

Only FCA will agree to such a proposal
Cars are becoming like our Android phones and the life cycle is shrinking

[pgsagar]

Originally Posted by JithinR

Wouldn't really take a rushlane article as gospel. These guys mess up leaks for automotive content, I wouldn't depend on them to write an accurate article on automotive policy.

Quite a lot of our ministers and babus are an uneducated/elitist lot but even they wouldn't be dumb enough to put such a high price tag on vehicle fitness tests.

Oh, really? Haven't you seen how fuel prices are skyrocketing? Dumb or smart, I don't know but if they can do that then what can stop them from doing this?

[JithinR]

Originally Posted by pgsagar

Oh, really? Haven't you seen how fuel prices are skyrocketing? Dumb or smart, I don't know but if they can do that then what can stop them from doing this?

My bad, I should have been more clear. I didn't actually mean that they wouldn't do it out of the goodness of their heart (or keeping in mind the low penetration of personal vehicles in our country or the economically weak section of population who wouldn't be able to get a new vehicle if this is implemented).

What i meant, even they are not dumb enough to fix exorbitant prices for these fitness tests because you can't make any nationalistic arguments to defend such a move.

You can already see Twitter filled with posts defending fuel price hikes using subsidies (as if we didn't have them before in our nation) and national building as arguments. But for the Scrappage policy the best they can do is talk about the environment (a tough sell in our country) and try to hide the real beneficiaries of this move like the Government (the automotive manufacturers). This will be difficult for even these guys to accomplish.

[logicalidiot]

We clearly do not do know what the inefficient politicians and the government babus were thinking with the launch of this new scrappage policy. But I can think of only two reasons why they implemented this.

1. To force the consumers to buy new cars and contribute to the Auto sector instead of using an old one. This would lead to more sales for Automotive Manufacturers. But the numbers would be seen majorly for small vehicles or sub 10 lakh vehicles considering the depreciation is going to be very high - Not sure it the babus would have thought of this factor.
   
   
2. To make ownership of vehicles in the country to be seen as a luxury. So that only the rich uses it and the rest are forced to shift to public transportation. We would be gradually going back in years.

God knows if the govt brought this rule to support the first point or the second. But the second is more likely to happen. I guess I need to go buy a new bicycle before everyone starts shifting to one.

[H0RSEPOWER]

The mandatory rule to ban the older vehicle would have created too much of protest. Hence the government is going to implement these decisions so that for most of the old vehicle owners there is no way other than scrapping their vehicles! 40000 rupees for every five years & add the green tax also on the same, which was announced two weeks back. Maybe, the actual reason is more due to the pressure from Automotive companies than for the actual benefit of the environment! The automobile owners are going to be in deep trouble!

[anjan_c2007]

Originally Posted by H0RSEPOWER

As per the updates from rush lane, each of the mandatory fitness test would cost 40 thousand rupees for private cars crossing 20 years of age, and they would get maximum of 3 chances to pass the test.
http://www.rushlane.com/vehicle-scra...-12392488.html

Apart from rushlane, the moneycontrol news item link also quotes the princely sum of Rs 40,000 for each automated fitness test. The Transport Ministry can conveniently give such automated fitness test licences to automobile dealers as each of them have good space for sales and service. They will collect Rs 40,000 from the hapless old car owner for each test. Though the 120 point MOT tests for three year or older cars in the UK are digitised and transparently recorded, while in India anything can happen even if records are digitised. Here now suppose the auto dealer fails the old car after testing even three times (according to the news report that he will be allowed three tests) and swallowing Rs 40,000=00 from the owner, the auto dealer's sales executives get trained to rush in to explain the hapless old car owner (who may by now be sweating) the advantages of going for a brand new car. They take him to their AC fitted sales department, offer a hot cup of coffee and offer a discount of Rs 40,000=00 straightaway on the new car plus the exchange value for his failed and to be scrapped jalopy and the new GST rebates coupled with the dealer's and manufacturer's discounts. Such a story is most likely to come true with the stages and actors and villains changing venues in India , come April 1, 2022.

moneycontrol.com
According to the new policy guidelines, a vehicle will have to undergo a fitness test, after the accepted 20-year period. While it’s possible for the car to pass a fitness test and acquire a fitness certificate; each fitness test would cost approximately Rs 40,000. This is in addition to the road tax, and possible “Green Tax” that you have to pay while mandatorily renewing your private vehicle’s registration after the 15-year period.Each fitness certificate is applicable for five years, after which the owner of the vehicle will be required to get another fitness test, costing the same. The financial cost of keeping a car in road-ready shape, alone would then dissuade the owner from constantly renewing the certificate

https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/bu...d-6429231.html

Taking a leaf from the UK's MOT tests, where a 40 year plus old car is treated as a part of the nation's wealth.

As of May 20, 2018, nearly all cars that were built more than 40 years ago are exempt from the annual MOT road worthiness test, unless owners voluntarily elect to have their vehicle checked. Previously, only cars first registered before 1960 were exempt from needing an MOT.

The unthinkable Rs 40,000 automated test fee to be paid every five years if true will see lakhs of old cars facing the guillotine. We will simply obliterate our automobile history of the recent decades (pre 1971 cars and bikes are protected by the notification that will soon to label these as vintages). The Bajajs 150/ Super/ Chetak, Lambys, Yezdis, Ambassadors Mark II/ 3 / 4/ Deluxe, Nova/ Grand/ Classic/ 1800 ISZ , Contessas/ Classic/1.8 GL/ 2.0 Isuzu diesel, Premiers President/ Padmini/137D/118 NE/1.38 D, Many Standard Herald four doors, Standard 2000's, Marutis 800, SS80/ SB 308/ 100/ Esteem/older Gypsy/ Van/ Omni, Mahindras CJ 3B/CJ 4A/ CJ 500D/ 540 DP/ 550 DP/ Commander/ Marshal and many more brands will face the axe only because these are unwanted by the politicians and bureaucrats.

The MAGIC Rs 40,000 figure has nowhere surfaced in any official budget document, nor has any reputed newspaper reported such a figure. It could also be a figment of imagination for some reporters. An old Rolls Royce and a Suvega owner will both have to pay the same amount of Rs 40,000, as it appears from the news reports in these two links viz. rushlane.com and moneycontrol.com.

[DriverR]

Protest against the policy has started...

Vehicle scrapping policy introduced in Budget evokes protests in Telangana

[From the article...] According to the Federation of App-Based Transport Workers, more than 30 lakh commercial vehicles in Telangana state, which also include auto-rickshaws, will be affected. The Telangana Auto Union JAC said that of the 1.2 lakh auto-rickshaws in the state, half were more than 15 years old. This decision, these outfits alleged, was aimed at helping automobile companies earn more profits.

Used-vehicle dealers felt that the government plan is unjust. Most middle and lower middle class families can only afford to buy used vehicles of around ten years old and are kept by them for many more years, they said.

[paperweight]

Why will it cost Rs 40,000 for a mandatory fitness test instead of a reasonable Rs 1,000 for 5 years? I hope this Rs 40,000 is not true.
I question the basis as the vehicle upto that point has had to comply with all the pollution under control tests. It cannot suddenly become an old polluting vehicle when yesterday it was an old non polluting vehicle. So why the test? It does not make sense. And then what? mothball it and bring it back as a 'vintage car' some years down the line?
The way to sell cars (if that's what you said you want to do) is to put money in the hands of people who will buy cars - every year there will be a new class of aspirants graduating into the car buying scene - if your economy is strong and robust so will the automotive sector be robust.

[marutifan]

I don't see this as helping the auto industries much. It'll probably hurt the 2nd hand market and likely cause people to simply hold on to their cars and extract maximum value from them, before switching over to public transport or car rentals.

While we own 2 mid size and one small car now, we'll probably shift to just one small car in the future once we need to scrap our existing vehicles.

[anjan_c2007]

We have highlighted our grievances as members of the Cent Ind Vintage Automotive Association (CIVAA), discussing the perils of the new private vehicle scrapping policy. The proposed draconian Green Tax and hiked Fitness Fees (though not announced, but expected to be steep going by the politicians statements) will see many of the 21-49 year old off the roads and the hapless owners giving up.

We can only hope that better sense will prevail on these people at the helm who seem to have been unduly influenced by the "automobile lobby" or is it "automobile mafia", that has emerged all-powerful to decide what is good for them, rather than what is good for the people.

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...w/80711820.cms

[AnishRanjan]

Guys please don't fall into the trap of misinformation. Most of the media organisations are having a field day with the scrappage policy and are trying to scare people with obnoxious figures and stories.

It will no doubt get costlier to own an old car. But 40,000 for a fitness test is bull shit and the country will revolt. No one in the hinterland will bother to get an FC and enforcement is impossible. Right now itself there are millions of vehicles running in this country with absolutely not documents. Forget FC they don't even have insurance and has probably changed hands a couple of times, which means the owner details is also not updated in the RTO. This is a fact and cannot be put aside.

So here is an article by the Times of India, which is a reputable media organisation in the country. This article makes more sense and presents a realistic picture of what the government is proposing in terms of rates for various categories of vehicles. You can get a fair idea of the expenditure you can expect to keep your old vehicle running.

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...20years%20old.

[logicalidiot]

The TOI article says "Currently, only seven out of the 25 sanctioned automated fitness test centres are operational and there are only two authorised scrapping centres, including one in Noida." So the govt does not have the required centres to effectively scrap the vehicles either.

It brings me to another question, would we get paid for the scrappage? Or is that at the mercy of the govt officials?