Sanjay Aggarwal calls on Satish Sharma

Jammu, July 29: Sanjay Aggarwal Chairperson, Federation of Automobiles Dealers Associations Jammu (FADA) on Tuesday called on Satish Sharma, Transport Minister Govt of J&K. According to a statement issued here, Aggarwal highlighted that Scrappage Policy has not yet been rolled out in UT of J&K as a result of which the consumers here are not able to take the benefit of scraping their end of life vehicles. Also, there is no scraping unit available in J&K, due to which the people of J&K have to go to neighboring states to get their vehicle scrapped and obtain Certificate of Deposit (COD). There are almost 2 lac End of Life vehicles in J&K which are due for scrappage.He said that the scrappage policy should be implemented at the earliest and discount should be given to customers on registration tax on new vehicles after scrapping its old vehicle whose life has ended under Vehicle Scrapping Policy. He shared the data of various states / UT which are giving 15-25% rebate on Road Tax against scrapping their end of life vehicles.Aggarwal suggested that Exemption of Road Tax on Hybrid and CNG Vehicles should be given in J&K as per the green initiatives taken by the Government of India. He informed that various states / UT of India in their Policy extend 50 – 100% exemption from road tax on all hybrid vehicles, including strong hybrids and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs)He raised the issue of End-of-Life Vehicles – ELVs which are coming for re-registration from other states in the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir leading to regulatory concerns. He proposed the introduction of a Green Tax @ 10% on such unsafe and unfit polluting vehicles. He also raised the issue of Tax on Tax. He said that the GST imposed on Road Tax should be stopped immediately. Double taxation is not applicable as per laws. Aggarwal discussed the issue of Unauthorized Sale and Purchase of Used Cars in J&K. He said that the people engaged in business of used cars are doing their business without any valid Trade Certificate thereby not only violating the law but also resulting in Revenue (GST) loss to the UT of J&K and needs to be checked by the authorities.Aggarwal said that to promote and support automobile business in J&K, Government of J&K should give 50% discount on registration of vehicles by organising Mega Trade Fairs from time to time on the similar lines of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Goa, which is being conducted successfully for the past few years and has resulted in enhancement of Automobile Business and Revenues for the government.On the occasion Satish Sharma said that the issues discussed are quite relevant and will be given due consideration. He said that the automobile sector should provide ample employment opportunities to the youth of J&K. He further said that the proposal by FADA regarding Formation of Automobile Service Center Cluster in Jammu and Kashmir can be looked into as it will generate a lot of employment opportunities in various districts. Regarding the formation of a committee for the automobile sector in J&K, he said that relevant stakeholders will be identified to form the committee