The Lok Sabha has passed an amendment in the Motor Vehicles Act, seeking to regularize e-rickshaws and other battery-operated vehicles to enable them plying in the national capital and other parts of the country.
The Motor Vehicles Amendment Bill, 2014, which was passed after a voice vote in the Lok Sabha, aims at providing licenses for battery-operated vehicles in the country.
After the bill was passed, Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari said that motion shall work for the welfare and livelihood of those who had been forced out of jobs after the Delhi High Court had banned the plying of e-rickshaws, citing safety concerns.
Gadkari further stated that all safety measures, including the standardisation of the design of e-rickshaws have already been addressed in the bill.
The minister also noted that the driver of the e-rickshaws will be provided with a loan at low rates of interest, enabling that person to become the owner of said vehicle.
Following a series of accidents, the Delhi High Court on July 31 had banned the plying of e-rickshaws in the national capital, citing safety reasons.
—ANI