Bhubaneswar: The State Government has made affixation of High-Security Registration Plates (HSRPs) mandatory for all class of old vehicles which were registered prior to April 1, 2019. Earlier, the HRPS has already been made mandatory for all new vehicles registered on or after 1 April, 2019.
Transport Commissioner Arun Bothra has issued an order for this purpose in accordance with rule 50 of Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989.
Vehicle owners have been given at least 3 months’ time to fix the HSRP on old vehicles before enforcement is undertaken by the transport department and police officials. Accordingly, different deadlines have been set for vehicles as per its registration number.
As per the order, August 31, 2022 is the deadline for the vehicles carrying Odisha registration mark and registration number ending with 1 & 2, while September 31, October 31 and November 30 is the deadline for the Odisha registration vehicles with numbers ending with 3&4, 5&6 and 7&8, respectively.
Similarly, the vehicle owners carrying Odisha registration mark and registration number ending with 9 and 0 will have to affix the HSRP by December 31, 2022.
To avoid last minute rush, Mr.Bothra advised vehicle owners to affix HSRP on their vehicles as soon as possible but not later than the above schedule.
If the vehicle owners fail to replace the existing number plates with HRPS before the above-mentioned deadlines, e-challans will be issued against the offending vehicle and attract fine of Rs. 5000 or Rs.10,000 under Section 192 of M.V. Act, 1988 as the case may be, warned the commissioner.
The order also said that legal action will be initiated against dealers or any other person found to be selling and supplying HSRPs in the state without being authorized by vehicle manufacturers.
As per the guidelines issued by the TC, HSRP would be affixed by the vehicle manufacturers (OEMs) and their authorized dealers only. Only the HSRP vendor authorized by the vehicle manufacturers (OEMs) shall supply the HSRPs only to their authorized dealers.
The vehicle owner will have to book for fitment of HSRP and make payment for the purpose through an online portal authorized by the OEM to maintain the transparency and to prevent excess charging from the vehicle owners.
The portal authorized by the OEMs will offer the facility to the vehicle owner for selection of any dealer, location and date for affixing of HSRP as per his convenience, it said.
The portal authorized by the OEM will have the capability to inform the vehicle owner status of the order placed for fitment of HSRP through SMS.
The OEMs or its authorized dealers shall display a board at a conspicuous place at their showroom indicating charges to be paid by the vehicle owner for affixation of HSRP and also on the HSRP portal to maintain transparency at all times.
The OEMs or its authorized vendor/dealer may offer the services to the vehicle owners for fitment of the HSRP where the owner resides or has his place of business on payment of extra charges subject to willingness of the vehicle owner. The authorized dealers after affixing the HSRP on the vehicle shall ensure that the laser code is updated in VAHAN portal.
“The vehicle not having valid registration certificate and fitness certificate (for transport vehicle) and the vehicles having arrear tax due shall not be allowed to affix HSRP by OEMs or its authorised dealers,” it said. The dealers will customize their portal accordingly.
All Regional Transport Officers (RTOs) have been instructed to comply with the order to ensure that HSRP are fitted on all motor vehicles registered prior to April 1, 2019 in a seamless manner.
The commissioner has directed the RTOs to convene meetings with the all dealers functioning under their jurisdiction to sensitize them about the modalities for fitment of HSRP on old vehicles within the scheduled date.