The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has published draft rules proposing significant amendments to the Motor Vehicles (Registration and Functions of Vehicle Scrapping Facility) Rules, 2021, aimed at strengthening the regulation of end-of-life vehicles and standardising the functioning of Registered Vehicle Scrapping Facilities (RVSFs).
One of the key proposals mandates that a Registering Authority shall not cancel the registration of a vehicle on the ground that it has been destroyed unless it is accompanied by a Certificate of Vehicle Scrapping issued by a Registered Vehicle Scrapping Facility and electronically verified through the VAHAN database. The requirement will not apply where a vehicle has been destroyed due to fire, riots, natural calamities or similar causes rendering it incapable of being recycled.
The draft amendments also broaden the definition of “End-of-Life Vehicles” to include vehicles with expired registrations, those declared as end-of-life under the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, vehicles whose registrations have been cancelled under the Motor Vehicles Act or by court orders, and those voluntarily declared as waste vehicles by their owners or competent authorities. A new definition of the “Portal” has also been introduced to formally recognise the Government’s centralised Vscrap platform integrated with the VAHAN database.
To improve environmental compliance and operational standards, the draft rules prescribe an extensive list of mandatory equipment that every RVSF must install, maintain and operate. These include depollution systems for different categories of vehicles, air-conditioner gas recovery units, LPG/CNG recovery systems, airbag deployment units, radiation detection systems, effluent treatment plants, plasma cutters, hydraulic lifts, baling presses, and specialised dismantling tools. Existing scrapping facilities will be required to comply with these equipment standards within one year from the date of notification.
The amendments further strengthen the audit mechanism by introducing mandatory equipment audits, requiring annual audit reports in a prescribed format and empowering the Central Government or the Registration Authority to suspend the registration certificate of a scrapping facility if audit reports are not uploaded within the stipulated period. A registration may also be cancelled if the suspension continues for more than three months.
The Ministry has invited objections and suggestions from stakeholders within 30 days from the date the notification is made available to the public, after which the draft rules will be considered for finalisation.