CHENNAI: Charges to renew fitness certificate (FC) for vehicles that are 15 years or older have been increased several fold. The revised charges came into effect from April 1.
The fee revision is aimed at phasing out vehicles that are over 15 years old, which damage environmental, said a notification issued by the Union Ministry for Road Transport and Highways a month ago as part of its plan to launch the National Automobile Scrappage Policy.
The move has drawn flak from a section of lorry and autorickshaw drivers, who demanded a rollback of the hike. S Shankar, an autorickshaw driver, said: "The government should have given at least 12 months time before taking such a decision. After COVID-19 lockdown, many of us became jobless and most drove old autorickshaws sourced from friends and family. The revised fee is too expensive given that the earnings have not reached pre-COVID level."
An official from the transport department said charges for FC renewal is collected by the Union government through an online portal. "The State government is unable to reduce or defer implementation of the decision," he said.
Revised and old fees
Car: Rs 5,000 (from Rs 600)
Bike: Rs 1,000 (from Rs 300)
Autorickshaw: Rs 2,500 (from Rs 600)
Lorry/bus: Rs 12,500 (from Rs 1,500)
Medium goods or passenger motor vehicles: Rs 10,000 (from Rs 1,000)