In order to receive Pollution Under Control (PUC) certifications for their cars and two-wheelers, owners in West Bengal now have to adhere to stricter regulations set by the state government.
According to West Bengal Transport Minister Snehasis Chakraborty, in an effort to increase process transparency, the state government has increased the need that all vehicle owners in the state to get a PUC certificate. The new law will go into effect on November 1, 2023, over the whole state.
So, vehicles that have been registered in West Bengal would no longer be able to receive pollution under control certificates (PUC) without first visiting an auto emission testing station. Before granting a certificate, the state transport department will be able to trace the vehicle’s real presence at each emission testing centre (AETC) thanks to the geofencing of the whole network. In order to track entrances and departures, geofencing entails establishing a virtual border around a certain site.
Furthermore, a PUC certificate cannot be obtained until all outstanding taxes and penalties have been paid by the vehicle owners. According to the new regulation, the vehicle in question will not be issued a PUC certificate if the taxes and penalties are not paid. Additionally, in order to get a PUC certificate, all cars are required by state law to be present at the emission testing facilities for real-time tailpipe emission testing.
According to the state government, thousands of vehicles, both private and commercial, still owe money for infractions of traffic laws. The PUC certificate cannot be obtained by the owners of these cars until all outstanding penalties have been paid, following the new regulation.
There have been claims that a large number of vehicle owners get their PUC certifications without even bringing their cars/bikes to an emission testing facility. Due to these violations, a large number of vehicles are still operating on the road even if their emissions of pollutants into the atmosphere exceed the allowed limit. Meanwhile reports state that the state government is also losing a significant portion of the money it should be receiving in taxes at the same time. Such concerns are the focus of the new regulations, reports add.
The transport department is also upgrading to the new features in PUC Version 2.0 on the Vahan portal in order to guarantee the delivery of an uncompromised PUC certificate, Times of India reports. The state’s emission testing facilities will have to download an application and input the vehicle’s GPS location when it arrives for a pollution assessment.
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