Public comments invited for proposed rules on registering vintage vehicles

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has published GSR 734 (E)  dated 25 Nov 2020 seeking comments and suggestions in regards to Amendment to CMVR 1989 relating to Vintage Motor Vehicles. Through this notification, the Ministry intends to formalize the registration process of the Vintage Motor Vehicles. There are no existing rules for regulating the registration process of vehicles of heritage value. These rules are proposed to be inserted as sub-rules 81A, 81B, 81C, 81D, 81E, 81F, 81G in the Central Motor Vehicle Rules, 1989.

The draft rules define Vintage Motor Vehicles as all those vehicles which are two-wheelers and four-wheelers (non-commercial/personal use) and are more than 50 years old from the date of their first registration (including imported vehicle) are proposed to be called as the Vintage Motor Vehicles. The restriction in the definition- no substantial overhaul of the vehicle which includes modification in chassis or body shell, and/or engine.

Procedure: It is proposed that all applications for registration shall be applied on “PARIVAHAN” portal. It is further proposed that:

• All States registering authority will appoint a nodal officer who will process all applications for registration of Vintage Motor Vehicles.
• Further, States will form a Committee which will inspect a vehicle and declare whether the vehicle is fit for registration under Vintage Motor Vehicle.
• If approved, a 10 digit alphanumeric number will be assigned to the respective Vintage vehicle. This registration shall be valid for 10 years. The format for the registration mark will consist of the letters “XX VA YY ****”, where VA stands for vintage, XX stands for State code, YY will be a two letter series, and “****” is a number from 0001 to 9999 allotted by State Registering Authority.
• Fees for a new registration- INR 20,000 and subsequent re-registration- INR 5,000.
• If a vehicle is registered as a Vintage Motor Vehicle, the sale and purchase of the vehicle is allowed under the rules.
• Restricted use of Vintage Motor Vehicle: A Vintage Motor vehicle is allowed to run on Indian roads only for display, technical research or taking part in a vintage car rally, refueling and maintenance, exhibitions, vintage rallies, to and fro to such exhibition/car rally.

The objective is to preserve and promote the heritage of old vehicles in India.