Ghaziabad: Ghaziabad Mahanagar Goods Transport Welfare Association has asked the RTA to reduce the one-time road tax on goods vehicles with a gross vehicle weight of up to 7,500 kg. Owners must pay the tax for 15 years, although diesel vehicles are permitted to operate in NCR for only 10 years and cannot operate there afterwards. Ghaziabad RTO department has forwarded the request to the transport commissioner in Lucknow for a decision.In Uttar Pradesh, the one-time road tax (OTT) for goods-carrying vehicles with a gross vehicle weight (GVW) for light vehicles is 3% of the vehicle’s cost for weights up to 3,000 kg, and 6% for weights between 3,000 kg and 7,500 kg, as updated under the Vehicles Taxation (Amendment) Act.The point of contention for vehicle owners is the fact that they are being charged for an extra five years during which the concerned vehicles will not be allowed to ply on NCR roads.Ashish Maitreya, president of Ghaziabad Mahanagar Goods Transport Welfare Association, said that the association has written a letter on the matter and given it to the ARTO officer (Administration) to do something on it.“Ghaziabad falls within NCR, where restrictions and guidelines concerning older diesel vehicles have been implemented from time to time by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) and other competent authorities,” he said. “The Association’s primary concern relates to the fact that when the permissible operational life of diesel vehicles in the NCR is stipulated as 10 years, and such vehicles are not permitted to operate in the NCR after the completion of this period, on what basis is one-time road tax being levied for a period of 15 years?”Ghaziabad RTO (Administration) PK Singh, meanwhile, said that this is an issue that will have to be decided by the state govt, and they have forwarded the letter to the transport commissioner in Lucknow for the same.
