Gadkari hopeful of Parliament nod on Motor Bill next session

Road, Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari today said he is hopeful of Parliament nod on new Motor Vehicles Bill in the upcoming budget session.
"I am hopeful of getting Parliament approval to the new Motor Vehicles Bill, that aims to make the entire sector transparent, in the next session," Gadkari told PTI.
The new Road Transport and Safety Bill seeks to come down heavily on traffic offenders and proposes steep penalties of up to Rs 3 lakh along with a minimum 7-year imprisonment for death of a child in certain circumstances, besides huge fines for driving violations.
Gadkari said the new law once enacted would overhaul the sector bringing in transparency besides curbing malpractices.

The new Bill, besides heavy penalty for driving related violations proposes a fine of Rs 5 lakh per vehicle as well as imprisonment for faulty manufacturing design.
The Bill is also aimed at bringing down fatalities in road accidents by two lakh in the first five years.

There will be "4 per cent GDP improvement on account of increased efficiency and safety of road transport", as per the draft Bill whose "Vision" also states that 10 lakh jobs will be created by increased investments in the sector.
India reports around 5 lakh road accidents annually with a death toll of about 1.4 lakh.

Commenting on the Bill, Gadkari has earlier said: "Providing safe, efficient, cost effective and faster transport across the country is our mission.