RTOs will be abolished and replaced by a new system: Nitin Gadkari

Continuing the Modi government’s trend of effecting major changes in administration and governance, Union minister for roads, transport and highways Nitin Gadkari on Monday said that the government was going to scrap the regional transport offices (RTOs) and replace them with a new system. [caption id=“attachment_1672301” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Nitin Gadkari said RTOs would be scrapped.[/caption] According to a report in The Times of India, Gadkari, while delivering the JS Karandikar memorial lecture in Pune, said, “There are some outdated laws and systems that need to be scrapped. Systems like RTOs will soon be abolished; there is no need for RTOs. We have prepared a law which will be introduced soon to replace RTOs.” Gadkari said the new system would bring an end to the corruption prevalent in the RTOs. “Tithe Laxmi darshanacha khel chalto (money rules there),” he said. Reacting to this proposed move, the Association of RTO Agents in Mumbai said they would protest if RTOs were scrapped. “We serve Mumbaikars charging a nominal sum. We make sure people get relevant documents on time. If the Central government is planning to scrap RTOs, where will we go and what will happen to our business and our families? We will definitely protest against this decision, if it gets implemented,” Ilyas, the head of the RTO Association, said in an India Today report. The minister on Tuesday added that the government will introduce Motor Vehicles Amendment Bill in the next session of Parliament and once enacted it will end malpractices in regional transport offices (RTOs) across the nation. “The Motor Vehicles Amendment Bill, being prepared in sync with practises in six advanced nations - USA, Canada, Singapore, Japan, Germany and the UK - will be introduced in the next session of Parliament. This will overhaul the sector bringing to an end the corrupt practises in RTOs,” Gadkari said on the sidelines of a meeting of Indian Roads Congress, reported PTI. This is not the first time the union minister has hit out at RTOs. On 3 August, after releasing a book of speeches in Mumbai by BJP MLC and Mumbai party president Ashish Shelar, Gadkari had said, “You are aware of ‘Laxmi darshan’ (slang for bribe) that goes on in RTOs. I have decided to ‘close the shop’ of RTOs.” (With inputs from PTI)