Vehicle Scrappage Policy In India, To Begin From 2023
PM Narendra Modi Launches Vehicle Scrappage Policy In India, To Begin From 2023: PM Narendra Modi has launched the much awaited vehicle scrappage policy in India today. PM Modi launched the policy at the Gujarat Investor Summit and has requested youth & start-ups to join this programme. Vehicle scrapping will help phase out unfit and polluting vehicles in an environment friendly manner, he said. PM Modi also mentioned that the govt aims to create a viable circular economy and bring value for all stakeholders while being environmentally responsible.
PM Narendra Modi Launches Vehicle Scrappage Policy In India, To Begin From 2023
In a tweet today, Narendra Modi mentioned - “The launch of Vehicle Scrappage Policy today is a significant milestone in India’s development journey. The Investor Summit in Gujarat for setting up vehicle scrapping infrastructure opens a new range of possibilities. I would request our youth & start-ups to join this programme."

Vehicle Scrappage Policy In India 2023
Vehicle scrapping will help phase out unfit & polluting vehicles in an environment friendly manner. Our aim is to create a viable #circulareconomy & bring value for all stakeholders while being environmentally responsible.

The government expects to generate employment for about 35,000 people at vehicle fitness centres and scrapyards and a collective investment of Rs 10,000 crore. The vehicle fitness test cost will depend on the type of vehicle. For a personal vehicle, it will cost Rs 300-400, while for a commercial vehicle it could be Rs 1,000-1,500.

Vehicle Scrappage Policy In India, To Begin From 2023
“We propose to scrap vehicles, which are 15 years and over, owned by the Central and state governments by April 2022," said Giridhar Aramane, secretary in the road transport and highways ministry. “From 2023 onwards, heavy commercial vehicles need to be scrapped if they do not conform to the fitness level prescribed under the rules. For personal vehicles, we plan to implement this from June 2024 onwards."
On the other hand, the vehicle scrappage policy is likely to give a major boost to the metal recycling business, said Grant Thornton Bharat. The report also said that the policy is likely to affect major changes in the Indian automotive industry.

“Be it generating employment, reducing pollution, or accelerating demands for electric vehicles, the policy proves to be a win-win situation for the auto industry and various other stakeholders," the report said.

The policy mandates that passenger vehicles older than 15 years and commercial vehicles older than 20 years will have to be scrapped mandatorily if they fail fitness and emission tests. Moreover, the policy is likely to positively impact the sales of new cars and pave way for more opportunities for the Indian auto sector.“One of the key opportunities that will emerge from the vehicle scrappage policy will be for the metal recycling business. It will also to an extent reduce the cost of production. Steel is a crucial component for automobile manufacturers, and its price has been growing up to almost 30 per cent in the last six months," said Saket Mehra, Partner and Automotive Sector Leader, Grant Thornton Bharat.

 “If you were to recycle the material and use the same for manufacturing, to an extent the prices will get rationalised. This is one of the biggest advantages. However, to what extent the price reduction will benefit the customer remains to be seen. At least to a certain point, there would be an impact on the lowering of the cost of production."


FAQ| Vehicle Scrappage Policy 
WHAT EXACTLY IS VEHICLE SCRAPPAGE POLICY?
Much like the western countries, the scrappage policy comes into effect when a vehicle’s registration is complete. In general, a passenger vehicle has a life of 15 years and a commercial vehicle has a life of 10 years, after which they become obsolete and also starts polluting the environment at a greater intensity than they would have been doing earlier. In western countries, these old vehicles are sent to scrapyards where they are dismantled and the steel used for making the body is crushed and recycled again. In India though, there was no such policy. Most of the vehicles either are on run currently polluting the environment or are lying at road sides.

WHAT DOES THE POLICY AIM TO ACHIEVE?
As explained above, a vehicle should be scrapped at the end of its lifecycle so that they are stopped running on roads that will reduce air pollution. Also, getting off older vehicles will generate space for new vehicles, which will boost the sales in the otherwise battered and bruised Indian auto industry. Nitin Gadkari explained that once the registration of the vehicles are over, they will have to go mandatory fitness test. However, they can also avail scrapping option.

WILL ALL VEHICLES OVER AND ABOVE TIME LIMIT WILL BE SCRAPPED?
No, not all vehicles will be scrapped as this is a voluntary scheme and not a mandatory one. However, there’s a catch here. All vehicles over and above the time limit will have to undergo mandatory fitness test. If a vehicles fails fitness test, they will not get renewal certificate and won’t be able to run on road. However, if they pass fitness test, they will have to undergo fitness test after every 5 years again to show their road worthiness.