Tuesday, March 30, 2021
By Kamal Swami
COVID-19: Validity of Vehicle Documents Extended Till June 2021
In its recent advisory issued to the states, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has announced to extend the validity of vehicle documentation till June 2021, due to a hike in the second wave of global pandemic COVID-19. The extension of validity will affect the vehicles that are registered under the Motor Vehicles Act 1988, and the Central Motor Vehicle Rules 1989. This includes the fitness, driving licence, registration, permit, and all those documents which could not be renewed due to the lockdown and expired back in February 2021 or would expire on March 31, 2021.
The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways had extended the validity of documents till March 30, 2020, due to the nationwide lockdown because of COVID-19. This was done to offer relief to the vehicle owners and minimize the gathering of people at the local transport offices. However, after that with the increasing number of corona cases, it became necessary for the government to extend the validity of different documents for a longer period. Going through this reason the government had to announce the duration of extension at regular intervals. The latest extension was extended till February 1, 2021, and was valid till March 31, 2021.
In its advisory, the MoRTH has said, "The transport ministry advised that the validity of the documents that have expired since February 1, the same may be treated to be valid till June 30, 2021. Enforcement authorities are advised to treat such documents as valid till June 30, 2021. This will help out citizens in availing transport-related services.”
