According to the latest information, India’s vehicle scrap policy was given “in-principle” approval in a meeting chaired by the Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister, thereby paving the way for mandatory disposal of commercial vehicles older than 20 years old. Minister Nitin Gadkari of the Road, Transport and Highway Ministry (RTHM), announced that the Vehicles Scrapping Policy aimed at curbing vehicular pollution in the country “has almost finalized” and may come online by April 1, 2020. The policy is also supported by RTHM to modernize commercial transport logistics as the 22 percent growth range of vehicles will require additional highway construction.
The GST Council is expected to further support the move as it has been requested to reduce the GST tax rate from 28 percent to 18 percent for replacement vehicles.
The Environment and Forest Ministry is developing rules and regulations to support the policy, while the Steel Ministry is developing recommendations for scrapping centers.
The policy is expected to affect as many as 28 million vehicles when it gets implemented. The additional scrapping volume is also expected to ease India’s reliance on imported scrap as it seeks to grow steel production.