SIAM files review petition in SC for BS-III sales ban

The Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) has filed a petition in the Supreme Court asking the apex court to review its order banning the sales of BS-III compliant vehicles in India after March 31, 2017.

To its defence, the automotive manufacturers' body has claimed that the court had not considered some facts, which influenced its previous order. The SIAM points to the Office Memorandum from the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways through which, the government had directed manufacturers to stop production of BS-III vehicles before 1st April 2017. SIAM claims that this Office Memorandum was originally dated 3rd March, 2017, but the apex court erroneously read it to be dated 3rd March, 2015. This led the court to conclude that the manufacturers were given ample time before the deadline, which was not true according to the automotive body.

SIAM claims that the manufacturers had received the Memorandum three weeks before the March 31 deadline. Moreover, the government had earlier assured that unsold BS-III vehicles that were manufactured before April 1, will be allowed to be sold even after the deadline, similar to what has been the arrangement when BS-II and BS-III emission norms were implemented. However, with the Supreme Court order, the existing stock was rendered useless, forcing dealerships to offer huge discounts in the last few days, in order to clear their inventory and minimise losses.

Various reports suggest that automotive manufacturers are still sitting on a cumulative unsold stock of 1.4 lakh BS-III vehicles, which equate to around Rs. 5,600 crore in valuation.

Source: Autocar India