Maharashtra: Govt To Discard 13,000 Vehicles Over 15 Years Old Under Central Scrapping Policy By January 1, 2025

Mumbai: The state government has decided to scrap 13,000 vehicles used by various state departments. This follows the central government’s 2021 vehicle scrapping policy, which applies to both government and privately owned vehicles.

Under this policy, vehicles older than 15 years, unfit for use, or polluting must be discarded. The government of India issued guidelines for setting up registered vehicle scrapping facilities to enforce this.

Accordingly, the state has identified 13,000 vehicles from its departments, semi-government bodies, local and civic bodies, and public transport undertakings, which will be scrapped in 2024-25.

On August 9, the central government directed the state to scrap these old vehicles, and a government order issued on November 14 mandates that this process be completed before January 1 next year.

Private vehicle owners must also comply with these guidelines. Those who wish to continue using their old vehicles must take three steps, according to state transport commissioner Vivek Bhimanwar.

The three steps, as per Bhimanwar, are obtaining an annual fitness certificate from automotive fitness centers, costing Rs1600 to Rs1800, and replacing any required parts; re-registering the vehicle with the RTO, paying Rs5,500 and paying a green tax, based on the vehicle type.