Even as the Institute of Road Transport has floated tenders for procuring 100 electric buses for the Metropolitan Transport Corporation and plans to add another 400 to the fleet of the State’s public transport system, the Tamil Nadu government is yet to come out with a policy on registering electric transport vehicles.
According to sources in the Transport Department, a proposal seeking guidelines on the registration of battery-operated electric vehicles was pending with the State government. However, tenders were floated for the purchase of 100 air-conditioned buses in June this year, and the last date for the submission of Expression of Interest documents from reputed national and international vehicle manufacturers ended in July.
Responding to a query filed by C. Manikandan of Virudhunagar under the Right to Information Act on the tourist permit and fee and tax structure for battery-operated electric buses, the Commissionerate of Transport and Road Safety said a clarification sought on the registration and fee details for the electric transport vehicles was under the consideration of the State government. Other electrical vehicles such as two-wheelers and cars were exempted from registration/renewal fee as per the guidelines of the Union government issued in August 2021.
Tamil Nadu State Information Commissioner S. Muthuraj, who heard the case, directed the transport authorities to communicate the decision taken by the government on the guidelines for registering battery-operated electric transport vehicles to the petitioner within one month.
When contacted by The Hindu on Monday, a senior official in the Transport Department said a decision on the process of registering battery-operated electric buses would be taken much before the buses would be procured and added to the fleet. All vehicles manufactured, after obtaining the approval of the competent authority, would have to be registered under the provisions of the Central Motor Vehicle Rules, 1989.
