Every government makes all the right noises to decongest Bengaluru’s roads. But when record-breaking growth in vehicular registrations massively boosts the Transport Department’s tax revenues, will the State be really interested in arresting the growth? Can it really tweak the tax structure to compensate for the shortfall through other sources?
Sharp rise, post-pandemic
First, the facts. Post-pandemic growth in vehicular registrations in the State continues to be robust this year, riding on the 30% year-on-year rise recorded in 2022. As many as 15.3 lakh new vehicles were registered in Karnataka in 2022, a sharp rise from the 11.7 lakh recorded in 2021.
