Delay in fresh legislation is most disappointing
Having lost an Union Minister to a car crash, almost a week after being sworn into office, the Modi Government had immediately promised a host of measures to improve the country's appalling road safety record. Unfortunately, a year later, on the first anniversary of Gopinath Munde's tragic death, those measures are stuck in the pipeline. The Road Safety and Transport Bill, 2014, which was to replace the existing Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, is yet to be studied by the Union Cabinet and still a long way from being notified and enforced. The Government has already missed three self-imposed deadlines — the first was set at 30 days from Munde's demise, the second was for the Winter Session of Parliament and the third, the Budget Session. Now, there is only an open timeframe. Another area of concern is that the Bill has been significantly diluted over this past year.
It has been revised three times and its fourth draft, which was released in February, is not quite as stringent as the initial proposal. For example, the fine for over-speeding has been reduced from Rs15,000 to Rs2,000 for the first offence; the fine for driving without a helmet reduced from Rs5,000 to Rs500; and the penalty for failure to comply with road design, construction and maintenance standards reduced from Rs10 lakh per person killed to one lakh rupees. In its current version, the Bill proposes to cap insurance claims towards death and disability resulting from road accidents at Rs15 lakh. Many of these changes have been made to accommodate the demands of different stakeholders, such as transport unions, automobile makers and insurance companies, some of whom have taken a hardline position on certain provisions.
One may choose to run down these parties for pushing their interests but that would be a waste of effort. This kind of tug and pull happens in all cases and, ultimately, it is the Government's responsibility to find a middle path that protects the interests of a wide cross-section of society. Also, while there's no doubting the need for strong laws and tough punishment to ensure road safety, there is also a case to be made for realistic penalties that can be effectively imposed. Or else, the new rules will just become another excuse for bribes and corruption.
A third issue that has come in the way of finalising the new law is State control. State Governments manage different parts of the overall transport network such as State highways, and toll taxes that are collected at State highways. They also have some control over driving licence issuing authorities. In short, State Governments have to be brought on board for the passage of the new law. This is an ongoing process. Some of the States have already sent in their responses while the Prime Minister's Office has asked the Attorney General to review the Bill and ensure that it doesn't impinge on the federal structure of the country, before the Union Cabinet considers the Bill for approval.