5,700 BS-IV vehicles blacklisted in Punjab

Chandigarh: The Punjab Transport department has blacklisted 5,706 BS (Bharat Stage)-IV vehicles which were registered in a fraudulent manner, it said on Monday.

Transport Minister Laljit Singh Bhullar said as per the guidelines of the Supreme Court, a complete ban had been imposed on the registration of BS-IV vehicles after March 31, 2020. But these vehicles had been registered fraudulently, of which the transport department identified 5,706 vehicles so far, he said in a statement here.

The minister said the investigation revealed that vehicle owners, some company dealers and some officials of regional transport authority offices tampered with engine and chassis numbers for registration of the vehicles.

Besides, many vehicle dealers continued their dealerships without getting themselves registered with the office of the State Transport Commissioner (STC), he further said.

”The department uploaded the list of fraudulently registered BS-IV and other vehicles on the website of the department,” informed the minister. So far, 5,706 vehicles have been identified and an investigation is on for the identification of other vehicles, he said. He said the erring employees and persons involved in it will not be spared.

The state government has also taken action against those vehicle owners, whose taxes were due and whose documents were incomplete.