JAMMU: Governor N.N. Vohra has accorded assent to the promulgation of “The Jammu and Kashmir Motor Vehicles Taxation (Amendment) Ordinance, 2017”. This Ordinance amends Sections 3 & 4 of the Jammu and Kashmir Motor Vehicles Taxation Act, 1957, which provide for various taxes to be levied on motor vehicles by the designated authorities. The existing fees and taxes have not been revised for a considerably long period due to the maximum limits being prescribed in Schedules I & II of the Act. The amendments in the Act, which are being carried out through the Ordinance, would empower the Government to revise and enhance the existing fees and taxes, for vehicles of various categories plying in J&K, beyond the limits stipulated in the aforesaid Schedules to the Act.
It is relevant to note that while the State Motor Vehicle Department is administering the Central Motor Vehicle Act, 1988, and the J&K Motor Vehicles Taxation Act, 1957, the fees, taxes and penalties which have been levied for the past many years are meagre and, therefore, do not have any mentionable deterrence qua those who continue to violate the traffic safety norms, leading to a progressively increasing number of fatal road accidents, from year to year.
It would be recalled that the Governor has been repeatedly exhorting the State Government to impost stringent penalties on all those who violate the traffic laws and regulations, including confiscation of vehicles which are no longer fit to be operated
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