Bhopal: Rejecting reports that Madhya Pradesh is at loggerheads with the Centre over harsher penalties enacted by the Centre in new Motor Vehicle Act, state Transport Commissioner clarified that several provisions of the act are already enacted in the state. The state minister added that it was wary on the compounding fee which falls into the domain.
The Transport Commissioner Shailendra Srivastava speaking to News18 said that the new Motor Vehicles Act has come to force in Madhya Pradesh. He said, “When it’s cleared by the parliament and Presidential assent is received, then the Act comes into force. For various sections, the date of enforcement is decided. There are around 60 sections (punishment) in which new rules are not required and those sections got implemented. There are other sections (like compounding fee or spot fines) for which rules are to be made by the state government.”
For example, the penalty or spot fine for not wearing helmet or not wearing seat belt was Rs 100 each in the MV Act but the state government had already increased it to Rs 250 and Rs 500 already, said the officer.
Shailendra Srivastava claimed that people are getting confused regarding punishment provisions and the compounding fee.
“These are different. Punishment is given by the court. So when, these sections like use of seat belts, drunken driving, over-speeding, non-use of helmet and so on, the act says offence is punishable. The Punishment remains same as per MV Act. And when the compounding fee or the spot fine is levied, which is an understanding between the offender and the authority. If the case is challaned in the court then they would be punished as per the central act provisions”, claimed Shailendra Srivastava.
The Transport Commissioner also added that the question regarding how much should be the compounding fee, has to be decided by the state government through a notification in the state gazette. The compounding fee is decided by the state government. There is no confusion.
For example, offences like drunken driving and driving stolen vehicles are punishable offences and would be dealt with central provisions but offences like non-usage of helmets and seat belts would be punished with compounding fee.
“We have to do what our neighbouring states are doing as to how much compounding fee they are putting so that we can work on parity,” said the transport commissioner. The officer also claimed that amount recovered through penalties is only a fraction of what the Transport Department earns through its various sources.
As against Rs 4,000 crore budget of the department last year, the penalties only contributed to 1 or 2% of the total budget, he added. Penalties are only means to discourage traffic violations, he added.
The official version was endorsed by the Chief Minister Kamal Nath who tweeted, “We would study the new act as public interest is our top priority. We reserve the right on the compounding fee and we would take a call in public’s interest if the need be on the basis of changes made by neighbouring states.”
MP Law minister PC Sharma and Transport minister Govind Singh Rajput on Sunday opposing high penalties announced that new Motor Vehicle Act would be implemented after a review.
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