Union Cabinet, headed by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, has passed the Motor Vehicle (Amendment) Bill 2016 in order to improve road safety and prevent unfortunate events from happening on the road.
The Bill reveals extremely hefty fines for traffic violations and it is based on the inputs of Transport Ministers from 18 states.
According to statistics, 5 Lakhs road accidents are reported all over the country every year from which 1.5 Lakhs people lose their lives. Government is determined to bring down these numbers by at least 50% in the next 5 years.
One of the highlights of the new Amendment is the revised compensation to the victim/victim’s family in the hit and run cases. The basic compensation has been increased to 2,00,000 Rs from 25,000 Rs. In case of road accident fatalities, the compensation is now up to 10,00,000 Rs.
Also, all fines relating to helmet-less riding, drunk driving and juvenile offences have been revised with much more hefty fines and penalties. However, what is most important is the implementation of these laws. It is often seen that the laws are there but the implementation is not. What the people (including the authorities) need to realize that these are not bound by anything and they must be followed when anyone is on the road using a vehicle.
Below is the table detailing the revised fines for all the traffic violations. Let us all hope that these get implemented without fail.
Proposed Amendments in Various Penalties under Motor Vehicle Amendment Bill – 2016
| Section | Old Provision / Penalty | New Proposed Provision / Minimum Penalties | |
| 177 | General | Rs 100 | Rs 500 |
| New 177A | Rules of road regulation violation | Rs 100 | Rs 500 |
| 178 | Travel without ticket | RS 200 | Rs 500 |
| 179 | Disobedience of orders of authorities | Rs 500 | Rs 2000 |
| 180 | Unautorized use of vehicles without licence | Rs 1000 | Rs 5000 |
| 181 | Driving without licence | Rs 500 | Rs 5000 |
| 182 | Driving despite disqualification | Rs 500 | Rs 10,000 |
| 182 B | Oversize vehicles | New | Rs 5000 |
| 183 | Over speeding | Rs 400 | Rs 1000 for LMVRs 2000 for Medium passenger vehicle |
| 184 | Dangerous driving penalty | Rs 1000 | Upto Rs 5000 |
| 185 | Drunken driving | Rs 2000 | Rs 10,000 |
| 189 | Speeding / Racing | Rs 500 | Rs 5,000 |
| 192 A | Vehicle without permit | upto Rs 5000 | Upto Rs 10,000 |
| 193 | Aggregators (violations of licencing conditions) | New | Rs 25,000 toRs 1,00,000 |
| 194 | Overloading | Rs 2000 andRs 1000 per extra tonne | Rs 20,000 andRs 2000 per extra tonne |
| 194 A | Overloading of passengers | Rs 1000 per extra passenger | |
| 194 B | Seat belt | Rs 100 | Rs 1000 |
| 194 C | Overloading of two wheelers | Rs 100 | Rs 2000, Disqualification for 3 months for licence |
| 194 D | Helmets | Rs 100 | Rs 1000 Disqualification for 3 months for licence |
| 194 E | Not providing way for emergency vehicles | New | Rs 10,000 |
| 196 | Driving Without Insurance | RS 1000 | Rs 2000 |
| 199 | Offences by Juveniles | New | Guardian / owner shall be deemed to be guilty. Rs 25,000 with 3 yrs imprisonment. For Juvenile to be tried under JJ Act. Registration of Motor Vehicle to be cancelled |
| 206 | Power of Officers to impound documents | Suspension of driving licenses u/s 183, 184, 185, 189, 190, 194C, 194D,194E | |
| 210 B | Offences committed by enforcing authorities | Twice the penalty under the relevant section |
