Close to two years after General Motors recalled 114,000 units of multi-utility vehicle Tavera that were rolled out in the Indian market over an eight-year period (2005-2013), a special investigation is yet to be initiated.

“There should be a special investigation team to look into the role of various players involved in the entire process, including government officials, testing agencies and companies,” says SP Singh, President of the Indian Foundation of Transport and Research Training (IFTRT), a research body.

The matter was labelled a “corporate fraud”, in a government committee report, which has been kept a closely-guarded secret not even revealed under RTI queries.

The call for an investigation comes in the backdrop of the quality of products sold to Indian consumers coming under the scanner.

“The modus operandi was that they had kept limited equipment that adhered to the norms. Whenever there was a testing requirement, they would take out ‘those’ equipment and get them tested. But, there was no special investigation team nor was there any FIR,” said a Highway Ministry official.

The official added that this was a jurisdiction issue and States where the factories were located had to take a call.

The current voluntary recall regime has come under a cloud, particularly with GM’s Tavera recall, say experts.

Dilution in norms sought

But even as the ministry tries to put a mandatory recall regime in the current Road Transport Safety Bill, auto industry officials want the norms diluted.

“The Centre should make an enabling Act wherein all rules should be included. Certain parameters or rules like fines on each category of vehicle or two-wheeler should not be put in the Act and rather put within the ‘rules’ in the Act itself so that they can be changed from time to time, as required. If they are put as an Act then the Government will take years to change the Act,” said an industry veteran.

However, in several cases, including the Carriage by Road Act of the Road Ministry, framing of rules itself has taken several years. And even if rules are framed, implementation takes a long time.

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