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Goa to belatedly implement new Motor Vehicle Act from May 1
The Motor Vehicles Act became law back in 2019 but could not be adopted by the state government after a public backlash.
The Goa government will belatedly begin implementing the new Motor Vehicles Act from May 1 this year, levying heavy fines on traffic rule transgressors, Goa’s transport minister Mauvin Godinho said.
“We had delayed the implementation because the repairs of roads were not being taken up in due earnest by the government. The repairs of roads all over Goa is (now) being undertaken on a war footing,” transport minister Mauvin Godinho said.
The Motor Vehicles Act , which became law back in 2019 after it was passed by Parliament, involves steeper fines running into thousands of rupees. It was not adopted by the state government after a backlash by the public over demand for ‘decent’ roads.
“We are going to adopt the new Motor Vehicle Act which was long overdue. The new MV Act will be implemented from May 1 and we are going to use this intervening period to bring about an awareness about its implementation,” Godinho added.
The state government has notified the new law which would now mean that road users will have to pay steeper fines ranging from ₹1,000 for failing to wear seat belts, to ₹10,000 for not allowing emergency vehicles to pass with an even higher fee for a second subsequent offence.
“All ADTs (assistant directors of transport) are going to hold programmes in their respective jurisdictions to educate people on traffic rules. The simple narrative is going to be, ‘if you don’t break the rules, there is no question of paying fine’,” Godinho said.
Goa’s vehicle density is among the highest in the country with the vehicle to population ratio nearly at 1:1 with more than 14-lakh vehicles on the roads for a population that is a little over 15-lakh.
The Opposition has, however, alleged that the conditions of the roads are not satisfactory for the implementation of the Act.
“Bankrupt @BJP4Goa Government which has failed to provide proper motorable roads now increases fines for traffic violations further pushing common man into financial disaster. Will @goacm take responsibility of casualties & fatal accidents due to bad infrastructure?” Leader of Opposition, Digambar Kamat tweeted.
