In India, the rules and regulations related to driver's license, registration of motor vehicles, control of traffic, construction & maintenance of motor vehicles, etc. are governed by the Motor Vehicles Act (MVA),1988 and the Central Motor Vehicles Rules (CMVR), 1989.
The Ministry of Road Transport, Highways & Shipping (MoRTH&S) acts as a nodal agency for formulation and implementation of various provisions of the Motor Vehicle Act and CMVR.
In order to involve all stake holders in regulation formulation, MoRT&H has constituted three committees to deliberate and advise the ministry on issues relating to safety and emission regulations, namely –
- CMVR- Technical Standing Committee (CMVR-TSC)
- Standing Committee on Implementation of Emission Legislation (SCOE)
- Automotive Industry Standards Committee (AISC)
These committees advise MoRTH&S on various technical aspects related to CMVR. These committees have representatives from various organisations namely, Ministry of Heavy Industries & Public Enterprises (MoHI&PE)), MoRT&H, Bureau Indian Standards (BIS), testing agencies such as Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI), Vehicle Research Development & Establishment (VRDE), Central Institute of Road Transport (CIRT), industry representatives from Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), Automotive Component Manufacturers Association (ACMA), Tractor Manufacturers Association (TMA) and representatives from State Transport Departments.
Major functions of the committees are:
- To provide technical clarification and interpretation of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules having technical bearing to MoRT&H, as and when so desired
- To recommend to the Government the international standards which can be used in lieu of standard notified under the CMVR. Permit use of components/parts/assemblies complying with such standards
- To make recommendations on any other technical issue(s) which have direct relevance in implementation of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules
- To make recommendations on the new safety standards of various components for notification and implementation under Central Motor Vehicles Rules
- To make recommendations on lead time required for implementation of such safety standards
- To recommend amendment to Central Motor Vehicles Rules having technical bearing keeping in view the changes in automobile technologies
CMVR-TSC is assisted by another committee called the Automotive Industry Standards Committee comprising of members from various stakeholders in drafting the technical standards related to vehicular safety. The major functions of the committee are as follows:
- Prepare new standards for automotive items related to safety.
- Review and recommend amendments to the existing standards.
- Recommend adoption of such standards to the CMVR Technical Standing Committee
- Recommend commissioning of testing facilities at appropriate stages.
- Recommend the necessary funding of such facilities to the CMVR Technical Standing Committee, and
- Advise CMVR Technical Standing Committee on any other issues referred to it
The Indian Standards for Automotive Industry are prepared by Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS). The standards formulated by AISC are also metamorphosed into Indian Standards by BIS. The standards formulated by both BIS and AISC are considered by CMVR-TSC for implementation.
Standing Committee on Implementation of Emission Legislation (SCOE) – This Committee deliberates the issues related to the implementation of emission regulations. Major functions of this committee are –
- To discuss the future emission and noise norms
- To recommend norms for in-use vehicles to MoRT&H
- To finalise the test procedures and the implementation strategy for emission norms
- Advise MoRT&H on any issue relating to implementation of emission and noise regulations
Based on the recommendations from CMVR-TSC and SCOE, MoRT&H issues notifications for necessary amendments / modifications in the Central Motor Vehicle Rules.
In addition, other ministries such as Ministry of Environment & Forest (MoEF), Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas (MoPNG) and Ministry of Non-Conventional Energy Sources are also involved in formulation of regulations related to emissions, noise, fuels and alternatively-fuelled vehicles.