Motor Vehicles Amendment Bill 2019: Old Fine vs New Fine

The Motor Vehicles Amendment Bill 2019 has been finally passed in the Rajya Sabha after getting rejected back in 2017 and seeks just the President’s agreement to become a law. The bill was brought by Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Mr Nitin Gadkari.

The bill has been passed after doing a number of amendments in the Motor Vehicle Act of 1988. The Motor Vehicles Amendment Bill 2019 was passed by the speaker Om Birla on the basis of a voice vote that happened in the Lok Sabha. The road safety bill received 108 nods to 13 rejections.

In its initial stages in the year 2017, the bill faced rejection from the Lok Sabha Session after it was passed by the Upper House of the Parliament. The pivotal point of the bill is to impose stricter punishments so that the defaulters avoid to violate traffic rules.

As per the Motor Vehicles Amendment Bill 2019, a new proposal has also been drafted under which the government would be able to increase the fines by 10% each year. Here is the complete list regarding the old penalties and the amendments introduced in them.

Motor Vehicles Amendment Bill 2019

Old Fine vs New Fine

Motor Vehicles Amendment Bill 2019

Fine Structure & Penalty Details

1. General (177): Under the General Provision Section 177, which is for the punishment of offences, the old penalty was INR 100, which has now been increased to INR 500. It says that if no penalty is imposed for any punishable offence under the act then a penalty has to be paid.
2. Road Rules Violation (177A): A person found guilty of violating the road rules and regulations under Section 177A will also be guilty and will be charged with a penalty of INR 500 that has been revised from INR 100.
3. Travelling without a Ticket (178): Travellers without a ticket will be punished under Section 178 with a fine of INR 500, increased from INR 200.
4. Disobedience of Authorities (179): Disobeying the assigned authorities is also an offence under Section 179 that has a penalty of INR 2,000, increased from INR 500.
5. Unauthorized Use of Vehicles (180): Unauthorised use of Vehicles without a license is an offence under Section 180. The old penalty of INR 1,000 has been amended to INR 5,000.
6. Driving without a Licence (181): Under section 181, if you are driving without a license, you have to pay INR 5,000 as a penalty, revised from INR 500.
7. Driving without Qualification (182): Under section 182, if the driver or the person in possession of the motor vehicle is not legally qualified according to the law then he will be charged with a penalty INR 10,000, increased from INR 500.
8. Oversized Vehicles (182B): A new law of oversized vehicles has been included under section 182B in which a penalty of INR 5,000 has been imposed.
9. Over-Speeding (183): As per the Motor Vehicles Amendment Bill 2019, the fine for over-speeding has been increased from INR 400 to INR 1,000.
10. Dangerous Driving (184): Under Section 184, dangerous driving is a punishable offence in which the defaulter will now be charged with a fine of INR 5,000, amended from INR 1,000.
11. Drunken Driving (185): Under the Drunk and Drive Section 185, an older penalty of INR 2,000 was imposed which has been revised to INR 10,000. In this, driving the car in a drunk condition or under the influence of drugs is a punishable offence.
12. Speeding/Racing (189): Under Section 189, if the driver of the vehicle is found violating the instructions regarding speed limit, then he will be charged with a fine of INR 5,000 that has been revised from INR 500.
13. Vehicle without a Permit (192A): Under Section 192A a penalty of INR 5,000 has been amended to INR 10,000, which states that driving, causing or allowing usage of a motor vehicle in the contravention is an unlawful act and is thus punishable. Earlier, there was no penalty for such violation or offence.
14. Aggregators (Violations of Licencing Conditions) (193): Aggregators or person violating license conditions stated under Section 193, will be punished with a penalty that can range between INR 25,000 to INR 1,00,000. Earlier, there was no fine for such a violation.
15. Overloading (194): Overloading is a punishable offence under Section 194 that imposes a penalty of INR 20,000 in which the person in possession of the vehicle also has to pay INR 2,000 fine for every extra tonne. Earlier, the penalty for such offence was INR 2,000.
16. Overloading of Passengers (194A): In case of overloading a passenger under Section 194A, the defaulter should pay INR 1,000 extra per passenger. Earlier, there was no penalty for such violation.
17. Seat Belt (194B): Under section 194B, the offence of not wearing a seat belt while driving is a punishable offence that holds a penalty of INR 1,000 that was earlier INR 100.
18. Overloading of 2-wheelers (194C): Under Section 194C, the initial penalty was INR 100, and it has now been amended to INR 2,000 along with the disqualification of the license for 3 months.
19. No Helmet (194D): Under Section 194D, not wearing a helmet while riding a 2-wheeler will now attract a fine of INR 1,000, increased from INR 100. The rider’s license will also be disqualified for 3 months.
20. Blocking Emergency Vehicles’ Way (194E): Not providing a way for an emergency vehicle is now a punishable offence under section 194E. It is a newly included offence under the Motor Vehicles Amendment Bill 2019, that holds a penalty of INR 10,000.
21. Driving without Insurance (196): Driving without insurance under Section 196 is a punishable offence with a penalty of INR 2,000, increased from INR 1,000.
22. Offences by Juveniles (199): Under section 199, if an offence or violation has been committed by a Juvenile, then the guardian or owner shall be deemed guilty with a penalty of INR 25,000 with 3 years of imprisonment. The Juvenile will be trialled under the JJ Act and his registration of the motor vehicle will be cancelled.
23. Power of Officers to Impound Documents (206): Under section 206, the officer in charge has the authority to suspend the driving license of the driver or the person in possession of the motor vehicle.
24. Offences committed by enforcing authorities (210B): Under Section 210B, if an enforcing authority officer breaks a rule, he/she will be held guilty, and has to pay a double penalty under the relevant section.

Motor Vehicles Amendment Bill 2019

7 Key Highlights

1. Safety of the Samaritan: According to the new provision, the people who lend help at the time of a road accident will not be bothered by any medical or law-enforcement officials for any interrogation. By such amendments, the government aims that accident victim should receive immediate necessary help from people without hesitation.
2. Fund for Motor Vehicle Accidents: The law-makers are aiming to provide cashless treatment to the victim of a road accident immediately through this fund, in addition, it will compensate to the person injured or killed in a hit-and-run case.
3. Driving License: Aadhar Card has been proposed as mandatory identity proof for driving license along with a proposal of driving school, and a computerised driving test to prevent the issue of fake driving licenses. About this bill, finer details are yet to be disclosed.
4. Third-Party Insurance: As per the new proposal, there is a huge increase in the insurance compensation from INR 50,000 to INR 5 lakh. The insurance firms will also be asked for an easy claim process that needs to be solved within a month. Compensation for people severely injured and killed in a hit-and-run case will be increased from INR 12,500 to INR 50,000 and INR 25,000 to INR 2 lakh respectively.
5. Recall of a Vehicle: The government can order a recall of a vehicle in a situation where it feels that it is a threat to the driver. In this proposal, the manufacturer will be responsible for the replacement of the defective vehicle or complete repayment of the entire price. In case of failure, the manufacturer will be imposed with a fine of INR 100 crore along with one-year imprisonment.
6. Road Safety Board: An organisation will be formed that is responsible to advise central and state governments on the aspects of road safety namely ‘Road Safety Board’. Promoting new technologies will be under the jurisdiction of this organisation.
7. Reduction of Corruption: The proposal has been put up to change the process of vehicle registration for a reduction in corruption at the RTO. A fine of INR 1 lakh will be imposed on the road contractors in case of failure to meet the road standards. As per the proposal, there should be new standards for the vehicle fitness and requirement of cab aggregators such as Ola and Uber to be issued licenses and compliance according to ITC, Act 2000.