Machine testing for vehicle fitness

For vehicle owners, fitness testing is a significant hurdle. Every vehicle, large or small, that completes a 15-year term is not allowed on the road without obtaining a fitness certificate. Typically, owners perform only superficial maintenance. Furthermore, vehicles that are presented for testing without the intervention of intermediaries may be rejected for even a single deficiency, regardless of how well they have been maintained. As a result, nearly 100 percent of vehicles are presented for fitness testing through intermediaries. It is an open secret that this has long been one of the areas within the Motor Vehicle Department where bribery is most prevalent.

Motor Vehicle Department officials provide fitness certificates based on manual inspections. This creates scope for corruption. To improve road safety, the Union Ministry of Road Transport had earlier directed that vehicle fitness testing be conducted using machinery. The Centre’s order specified that vehicle components such as brakes, headlights and emissions should be tested precisely. Although there are currently nine Automated Vehicle Testing Centers in the State, none are operational. Six of these were functional at one point, but operations ceased because the ₹8.5 crore in arrears owed to Keltron, which was responsible for their maintenance, was not paid.

Following fresh instructions from the Central government, the Motor Vehicle Department has announced that 28 testing centers, two in each district, will be set up. These will be established under a public-private partnership model led by the Motor Vehicle Department. While the association of Vehicle Inspectors had demanded the authority to grant fitness certification even after mechanical testing, the Transport Commissioner rejected the request, raising hopes that the system will be implemented as proposed. Transport Commissioner C.H. Nagaraju has clarified that officials will not need to inspect vehicles or grant fitness certificates. Instead, vehicles that pass all three types of tests will automatically receive certification. Once a vehicle enters the track equipped with sensor systems, the inspection will be completed within ten minutes, and the result will be made available as a real-time digital report.

The information captured by high-resolution cameras and sensors will be transmitted directly to the Central government’s 'Vahan' server. Consequently, there will be no possibility of obtaining a fitness certificate for a vehicle that fails the machine-based test. If the test is not passed, there will be an opportunity to correct the defects and opt for a retest. With the implementation of this system, it is expected that the bribery associated with issuing fitness certificates will come to an end. The public can also be assured that only vehicles that are genuinely fit will be on the road. This is a move that deserves to be widely welcomed. The government should also consider fixing the fees for fitness testing at a rate affordable for ordinary people as well.