Himachal Pradesh: Cracking down on private and Volvo buses from other states violating permit conditions and carrying passengers besides goods, the transport department has challaned over 15 vehicles in the last three days. Regional Transport Officer Kavita Thakur said a special drive has been launched to check vehicles registered in other states and running on contract carriage permits. Private vehicles being used unauthorisedly for commercial purposes are also being checked. Over Rs 3.5 lakh fine has been levied for various violations. Though contract carriages are supposed to carry passengers on booking and require valid permits under Section 66(1) read with Section 74 of the Himachal Pradesh Motor Vehicles Taxation Act, 1972, it was observed that these vehicles were not only carrying passengers but also fruits, vegetables and flowers. This practice was not only affecting the revenue prospects of commercial vehicle owners but was also causing losses to the state government. The practice was more prevalent on the Parwanoo-Solan-Shimla highway as the road connects states like Punjab, Haryana and Delhi to Shimla.
“Such vehicles defraud the state of Special Road Tax (SRT) levied as per the provisions of the Himachal Pradesh Motor Vehicles Taxation Act, 1972, besides causing loss to the revenue of the transport department by offering a parallel unauthorised transport system,” Thakur said. The official further said that the revenue loss has also come to light due to online booking apps like BlaBlaCar. It has been observed that private vehicles are offering surreptitious fare facilities through online booking applications causing loss to the state exchequer. To curb these illegal activities and ensure safety of passengers, the transport department has launched a special enforcement drive. It will run till August 8 and will focus on checking violations of contracted transport rules by Volvo and private buses of other states plying in Himachal without special transport rules. The officials are also keeping a check on other violations like overloading by goods vehicles as these compromise safety and cause further damage to the road. Other violations like absence of high security registration plates are also under the radar of the officials, who usually hit the roads during evening hours when such activities are at peak. Though the cash-strapped state government has given financial targets to the transport department by issuing challans for various violations, such illegal activities are also affecting the finances of the state-run Himachal Roadways Transport Corporation, which is already in losses.
