Owners of old vehicles may now have to pay a ‘green tax’ as the Union minister for road transport and highways Nitin Gadkari oapproved a proposal to levy a “Green Tax” on vehicles older than eight years at the time of renewal of fitness certificate.
The proposal will now go to the States and Union territories for consultation before it is formally notified. Under the new norms, the transport vehicles which are older than eight years could be taxed at the rate of 10-25 per cent of road tax.
Personal vehicles will be charged a tax at the time of renewal of Registration Certification after 15 years. The levy may differ depending on fuel (petrol/diesel) and type of vehicle.
Meanwhile, personal vehicles to be charged green tax after 15 years and public transport vehicles, such as city buses, to be charged a lower green tax.
However, the government exempted vehicles used for farming, such as tractors, harvesters and tillers. Also, vehicles like strong hybrids, electric vehicles and those using alternative fuels like CNG, ethanol and LPG will be exempted from green tax.
- The benefits of the “Green Tax” could be:
- To dissuade people from using vehicles which damage the environment
- To motivate people to switch to newer, less polluting vehicles
- Green tax will reduce the pollution level, and make the polluter pay for pollution.
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