The Supreme Court on Wednesday directed that public
service vehicles should be granted a fitness certificate or permit only after
the installation of vehicle location tracking devices (VLTDs) and emergency
panic buttons, and that these are reflected in the Vahan database.
The directive, under the provisions of the
Central Motor Vehicles (CMV) Rules, 1989, came amid concerns about the
implementation of measures to reduce road accident fatalities across the
country.
The apex court said that currently, less than
one per cent of transport vehicles have the mandated vehicle tracking devices
installed, despite the legal requirement under Rule 125H of the Central Motor
Vehicles Rules, 1989.
While calling the situation “disturbing,” a
Bench of Justices JB Pardiwala and KV Viswanathan issued the directive and said
that the devices are critical for ensuring passenger safety, particularly for
women, children, and elderly persons, by enabling timely emergency response.
“We direct all States and Union Territories
to strictly enforce the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989 by ensuring the
installation of vehicle location tracking devices and panic buttons in a
time-bound and verifiable manner in both new and existing public service
vehicles,” the Bench said.
The order stated, “We direct the States and
Union Territories that no public service vehicle shall be granted a fitness
certificate under Section 56 or a permit under Section 66 of the Motor Vehicles
Act, 1988, without verified installation of VLTDs and emergency buttons, and
reflection in the VAAHAN App.”
The Bench also ordered retrofitting of VLTDs
and panic buttons in public service vehicles registered up to December 2018, in
line with the statutory requirements.
The Bench was hearing a public interest
litigation filed by Coimbatore-based surgeon S Rajasekaran, who highlighted
India’s high rate of road fatalities and criticised the “utterly callous and
casual attitude” of state authorities towards the implementation of road safety
measures.