Four regional transport offices in the state have been restrained from issuing vehicle fitness certificates after it was informed to the Bombay High court that the offices were not fully equipped to conduct the test as required under the Motor Vehicles Act.
A division bench of Justice Abhay Oka and Justice Amjad Sayyed stayed the operations at the RTO's in Mumbai Central, Pune, Nashik and Lathur. The court passed the order as the state failed to comply with an earlier order of the court issued on February 28, directing the state to take corrective steps.
The last order of the high court had asked all 49 RTOs in Maharashtra to provide the necessary infrastructure required to carry out the tests. If such condition was not complied with by March 10, the RTOs were warned that they would be restrained from issuing fitness certificates.
As per the Motor Vehicles Act, it is mandatory for the RTOs to have 400 metres road track for testing. The vehicles are made to run at a speed of 40 kms per hour and asked to apply brakes suddenly. By doing this, the authorities find out at what distance the vehicles stop after applying brakes. The four RTOs which have been banned from issuing fitness certificates have just 250 metres long road tracks for carrying out the brake test.
The bench today indicated that in respect of other RTOs (besides the four banned today) it would pass a detailed order on next Wednesday (March 19). The order was passed during the hearing of a PIL filed by activist Srikant Karve, seeking a direction to RTOs to follow the provisions of Motor Vehicles Act.
It is stated in the PIL that an average 70 vehicles are cleared everyday by each RTO in the state after issuing the fitness certificates, and this would be impossible if the mandatory checks are actually being carried out.
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