INDIA (en)

According to notification S.O.1248(E) (Government of India, 2004) Table 1, in exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (4) of section 41 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, the Government of India defines two types of motor vehicles:

1) Transport vehicles; and

2) Non-transport vehicles, or vehicles for purposes other than transport.

Vehicles for purposes other than transport are defined in Chapter 1 of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules 1989, paragraph 2 (h) as motor vehicles whose primary function is other than the transport of goods or passengers (Ministry of Road Transport & Highways, 1989).

The category of non-transport vehicles includes fleet such as agricultural vehicles or construction machinery and others, as made explicit in the first table of the notification S.O.1248(E):

• Motorcycle with or without side car for personal use, mopeds with engine capacity exceeding 25 cc, invalid carriage, three-wheeled vehicles for personal use.
• Forklifts, vehicles or trailers fitted with equipment such as rig, generator and compressor, crane-mounted vehicles.
• Agricultural tractors or power tillers.
• Private service vehicles registered in the name of an individual and declared to be used by the individual solely for personal purposes, camper van or trailer for private use.
• Tow trucks, breakdown vans, recovery vehicles, tower wagons and tree-trimming vehicles owned by central, state or local authorities.
• Construction equipment vehicles whose use on public roads is incidental to the main off-road function. However, when the public road is being used regularly for carrying on commercial activities, then Construction Equipment Vehicles such as dumpers and excavators being used for such activities, shall be deemed as transport vehicles.

In addition, according to the Central Motor Vehicles Rules 1989, Chapter 1, the terms are defined in its numeral 2:

• Agricultural tractor: any mechanically propelled four-wheeled vehicle designed to work with suitable implements for various field operations and/or trailers to transport agricultural products or materials. Agricultural tractor is a non-transport motor vehicle;
• Combine harvester: agricultural equipment vehicle, self-propelled or agricultural tractor powered type (either coupled to the trailer for header assembly or any other attachment of the machine) designed to perform more than one of the following tasks namely:
  • Picking, harvesting, threshing, separating, cleaning, chopping, collecting and unloading crop or agricultural produce, such as a grain, sugarcane, cotton, fodder, straw or stalk, while moving through the standing crop or agricultural produce;
  • Agreement of bagging with a pick-up attachment to use it for handling crop that has been swathed.
    
    A combine harvester shall be a non-transport motor vehicle, the driving on the road of which is incidental to the main intended use in the fields and for travelling from one field to another, for short durations, at a speed not exceeding thirty kilometre per hour (Ministry of Road Transport & Highways, 1989).
• Construction equipment vehicles: it refers to rubber tyred (including pneumatic tyred), rubber padded or steel drum wheel mounted, self-propelled, excavator, loader, backhoe, compactor roller, dumper, motor grader, mobile crane, dozer, fork lift truck, self-loading concrete mixer or any other construction equipment vehicle or combination thereof designed for off-highway operations in mining, industrial undertaking, irrigation and general construction but modified and manufactured with “on or off” or “on and off” highway capabilities. A construction equipment vehicle shall be a non-transport vehicle the driving on the road of which is incidental to the main off-highway function and for a short duration at a speed not exceeding 50 kms per hour. This category does not include other purely off-road construction equipment designed and adopted for use in enclosed premises, factories or mines, or sites other than a road network, not equipped to travel on public roads by its own means (Ministry of Road Transport & Highways, 1989)

Finally, according to the Motor Vehicles Act (Ministry of Road Transport & Highways, 1988) in its numeral 2, although definitions for off-road vehicles are not properly identified, classifications are provided in which some of these may be included, specifying:

• Tractor: a motor vehicle which is not itself constructed to carry any load (other than equipment used for the purpose of propulsion); but excludes a road-roller.
• Motor vehicle: any mechanically propelled vehicle adapted for use upon roads whether the power of propulsion is transmitted thereto from an external or internal source and includes a chassis to which a body has not been attached and a trailer; but does not include a vehicle running upon fixed rails or a vehicle of a special type adapted for use only in a factory or in any other enclosed premises or a vehicle having less than four wheels fitted with engine capacity of not exceeding 1 [twenty-five cubic centimetres];.
• Heavy goods vehicle: any goods carriage the gross vehicle weight of which, or a tractor or a road-roller the unladen weight of either of which, exceeds 12,000 kilograms.
• Light motor vehicle: a transport vehicle or omnibus the gross vehicle weight of either of which or a motor car or tractor or road-roller the unladen weight of any of which, does not exceed 1 [7500] kilograms.

Table 1 presents a compilation of different types of instruments identified in India for the control of air pollution generated by NRMM.

Fuente: elaboración propia.

Diesel-powered agricultural and construction vehicles and machinery

On 5 March 2018, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways published the final regulation for Bharat Stage A construction equipment vehicle shall be a non-transport vehicle the driving on the road of which is incidental to the main off-highway function and for a short duration at a speed not exceeding 50 kms per hour. non-road emission standards (called BS Stage CEV/Trem IV and V), including stricter emission limits for particulate matter (PM), particle number (PN) (for BS V only), nitrogen oxide (NOx), hydrocarbons (HC) and carbon monoxide (CO), which will be applicable for diesel-powered equipment, including agricultural tractors, construction vehicles and harvesters. According to ICCT (2018), this is the first time that India has adopted a consistent set of standards for both agricultural and construction machinery, assigned distinctive terminology for each type of machinery (Trem and CEV, respectively) and set maximum levels that are equivalent to EU Stage V emission standards. The deterioration factors for durability periods and test cycles of the current Bharat standards are also consistent with those of the European Stage IV and V standards (Dieselnet, 2018; ICCT, 2018).

Despite the benefits that the implementation of such emission limits in India may bring, some authors have highlighted the fact that the BS IV standard does not specify limit values for engines with a power rating below 37 kW (which account for about 90% of agricultural tractors in India), nor are limits covered for engines above 560 kW, at least until the implementation of the BS V standard by 2024, when all power ratings will be covered. According to the ICCT, by not specifying standards for engines below 37 kW in the BS IV standard, it will substantially delay the introduction of emission standards for engines used in most agricultural tractors and similar sized non-road equipment, for which one recommendation is the formulation of amendments to the standards that set stringent limits equivalent to Tier 4 standards for that range (Dieselnet, 2018; ICCT, 2018).

Despite the benefits that the implementation of such emission limits in India may bring, some authors have highlighted the fact that the BS IV standard does not specify limit values for engines with a power rating below 37 kW (which account for about 90% of agricultural tractors in India), nor are limits covered for engines above 560 kW, at least until the implementation of the BS V standard by 2024, when all power ratings will be covered. According to the ICCT, by not specifying standards for engines below 37 kW in the BS IV standard, it will substantially delay the introduction of emission standards for engines used in most agricultural tractors and similar sized non-road equipment, for which one recommendation is the formulation of amendments to the standards that set stringent limits equivalent to Tier 4 standards for that range (Dieselnet, 2018; ICCT, 2018).

Fuente: elaboración propia con base en (Dieselnet, 2018).

According to ICCT, the stricter PM and PN limits are set at a level that will ensure the implementation of diesel particulate filters, the key technology needed to effectively control particulate matter emissions from diesel engines, adopted as expected in the European Stage V standards. (ICCT, 2018).

Locomotives

Locomotive operation in India is an important component of non-road mobile machinery; it is regulated by the Ministry of Railways and carries up to 13 million passengers per day in 2018. In March 2017, India’s Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) submitted proposed emission standards for diesel locomotives to the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, […] From April 2026, compliance tests will be required to be implemented for all engines manufactured and approved by the BS V standard that are in operation, the execution of which will be done through portable emission measurement systems (PEMS). whose limit values are based on emission measurements conducted by the CPCB on Indian railways of the two categories operating in the country: ALCO-type locomotives and heavy-duty EMD-type locomotives. The standards would be applicable through the useful life of the locomotive and the proposal provides for defining a compliance protocol, including certification, production line testing and in-use testing, based on the practice followed by US railroads (Dieselnet, 2018; Indian Ministry of Railways, 2018).

Fuente: elaboración propia con base en (Dieselnet, 2018).

According to Chapter 87 of the ITC HS Code (2017) of the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), import requirements for mobile machinery other than railway and tramway rolling stock are set out as specified below:

Import requirements for used vehicles and machinery

1. A second-hand or used vehicle (including all vehicles other than railway or tramway) for the purposes of this Chapter shall mean a vehicle which:
   • Has been sold, leased or loaned prior to importation into India; or
   • Has been registered for use in any country according to the laws of that country, prior to importation into India.
2. The importation of second-hand or used vehicles shall be subject to the following conditions:
   • The second-hand or used vehicle shall not be older than three years old from the date of manufacture.
   • The second-hand or used vehicle shall:
     • Have right-hand steering and controls (applicable on vehicles other than two- and three-wheelers).
     • Have a speedometer indicating the speed in kilometres.
     • Have photometry of the headlamps to suit “keep left traffic”.
   • In addition to the conditions specified in (a) and (b) above, the second-hand or used vehicle shall conform to the provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act 1988 and the rules made thereunder.
3. Whoever being an importer or dealer in motor vehicles who imports or offers to import a second-hand or used vehicle into India shall:
   • At the time of importation, submit a certificate issued by a testing agency, which the Central Government may notify in this regard, that the second hand or used vehicle being imported into India has been tested immediately before shipment for export to India and the said vehicle conforms to all the regulations specified in the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 of India and the rules made thereunder.
   • At the time of importation, submit a certificate issued by a testing agency, which the Central Government may notify in this regard, that the second hand or used vehicle being imported into India has been tested immediately before shipment for export to India and the said vehicle conforms to the original homologation certificate issued at the time of manufacture.
   • On arrival at the Indian port but before clearance for home consumption, submit the vehicle for testing by the Vehicle Research and Development Establishment, Ahmednagar of the Ministry of Defence of the Government of India or Automotive research Association of India, Pune or Central Farm Machinery Training and Testing Institute, Budni, Madhya Pradesh for tractors, and such other agencies as may be specified by the Central Government, for granting a certificate by that agency as to the compliance of the provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 and any rules made thereunder.
   • Import of these vehicles shall be allowed only through the customs port at Mumbai.
4. The second hand or used vehicles imported into India should have a minimum roadworthiness for a period of 5 years from the date of importation. For this purpose, the importer shall, at the time of importation, submit a declaration indicating the period of roadworthiness in respect of every individual vehicle being imported, supported by a certificate issued by any of the testing agencies, which the Central Government may notify in this regard.

Import requirements for new vehicles

• A new imported vehicle (including all the vehicles other than Railway or Tramway) for the purposes of this Chapter shall mean a vehicle that:
  • has not been manufactured/assembled in India.
  • has not been sold, leased or loaned prior to importation into India.
  • has not been registered for use in any country according to the laws of that country, prior to importation into India.
• The import of new vehicles shall be subject to the following conditions:
  • The new vehicle shall:
    • have a speedometer indicating the speed in kilometres per hour.
    • have right hand steering, and controls (applicable on vehicles other than two and three wheelers).
    • have photometry of the headlamps to suit continuous traffic.
    • be imported from the country of manufacture.
      
      The country of manufacture will also mean a Single Market like the European Union (EU).
      
      In addition to the conditions specified in (a) above, the new vehicle shall conform to the provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 and the rules made thereunder, as applicable, on the date of import.
      
      Whoever being an importer or dealer in motor vehicles who imports or offers to import a new vehicle into India shall:
    • El país de fabricación también significará un mercado único como la Unión Europea (UE).
      
      Además de las condiciones especificadas anteriormente, el vehículo nuevo deberá cumplir con las disposiciones de la Ley de Vehículos Motorizados de 1988 y las reglas establecidas en virtud de esta, según corresponda, a la fecha de importación. 
      
      Quien sea un importador o distribuidor de vehículos de motor que importe u ofrezca importar un vehículo nuevo en la India deberá:
      
      • at the time of importation, have valid certificate of compliance as per the provisions of rule 126 of Central Motor Vehicle Rules (CMVR), 1989, for the vehicle model being imported, issued by any of the testing agencies, specified in the said rule.
      • be responsible for all the provisions assigned to the manufacturer as per Rules 122 and 138 of CMVR, 1989 and for issuing Form 22, as per provisions of CMVR, 1989.
      • give an undertaking in writing that the proof of compliance to conformity of production as per rule 126A of CMVR shall be submitted within six months of the imports. In case of failure to do so, no further import of new vehicle of that model shall be allowed thereafter.
• The import of new vehicles shall be permitted only through the following Customs port at Nhava Sheva, Kolkata, Chennai and Chennai Airport, Cochin, ICD-Tughlakabad and Delhi Air Cargo, Mumbai Port and Mumbai Air Cargo Complex, Vishakhapatnam Port, ICD Talegaon Pune, ICD Faridabad, Ennore port, Kattupalli Port, APM Terminals, Pipavav Port and Krishnapatnam Port. In addition, import of new motorcycles is also permitted through LCS Benapole / Petrapole and LCS Agartala.
• The provisions of this notification will not apply to the imports of new vehicles:
  • for the purpose of certification as per para (i) above; and
  • for the purpose of defence requirements.
• The above-mentioned provisions will also not apply to the import of new vehicles for R and D purpose by vehicle manufacturers and auto component manufacturers. However, the vehicles imported by both these categories for R and D will not be registered under the CMVR Rules in the country and will not apply on Indian roads. The customs will make necessary endorsement at the time of clearance of these vehicles. g. In case the country of manufacture is a land locked country and the shipment takes place from another country, the vehicles would have deemed to have been exported from the country of manufacture provided there are supporting documents to track the vehicles from the country of manufacture to the Port of Landing and from there, to the Port of Destination.

The Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) sets out in its document Procedure for Type-approval and Certification of Agricultural Tractors for Compliance to Central Motor Vehicle Rules, Annex E, guidelines for the selection of agricultural tractors for verification under CMRV requirements (AIS-017), which can be accessed on the association’s website. (ARAI, 2016).

On the other hand, the following table presents the tests required for construction machinery vehicles or equipment according to the CMVR vehicle type-approval regulation.

Fuente: ARAI, 2012

Conformity of Production (COP) period for agricultural tractor, power tiller, construction equipment vehicle (CEV) and combine harvester engines with annual import up to 200 units will be once every two years per family/model. For agricultural tractor, power tiller, construction equipment vehicle (CEV) and combine harvester engines with annual production / import exceeding 200 units it shall be once a year per family/model. Other requirements concerning the details of conducting the COP test can be found in paragraphs 3.2 to 3.11 of the Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) document AIS-137 (Part 6) of 2019, as well as exceptional cases, conduct of extended tests, forms required for completion and consequences of failure or incompleteness of the test (ARAI, 2019a).

If the vehicle/engine complies with the COP requirements, the testing agency shall issue a COP certificate to the manufacturer. The COP certificate will cover the vehicle/engine model and its variants produced/planned to be produced during the COP interval. The test agency shall also send copies of the COP certificate to other test agencies and nodal agencies. In the Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) document AIS-137 (Part 6) of 2019, the format of the COP certificate is given in Annex 3 for vehicles with gross vehicle weight up to 3,500 kg and in Annex 4 for vehicles with gross vehicle weight above 3,500 kg, agricultural tractor, construction machinery and power tillers. (ARAI, 2019a).

On the other hand, in the ARAI AIS-137 (Part 7) of 2019, the specific emission tests for COP approval of construction (CEV) and agricultural (TREM) machinery in accordance with the CMRV rules number 115 and 126 as per the current Bharat Stage (CEV or TREM) IV and V emission standards are laid down. As in other countries, the NRTC and NRSC test cycles are implemented for CEV and TREM non-road mobile machinery as per the Table 6. 16 (ARAI, 2019b).

According to AIS-137 (part 7) standard (ARAI, 2019b), Clause 3 specifies the application for engine type-approval, as a separate technical unit, which shall comply with the following points:

1. The application for approval of an engine or an engine family with regard to the level of emission of gaseous and particulate pollutants shall be submitted by the engine manufacturer or by a duly accredited representative;
2. The application shall be accompanied by the following information: a description of the engine type comprising the particulars referred to in AIS-007 and, if applicable, particulars of the engine family as referred to in the same standard;
3. An engine conforming to the engine type characteristics described in AIS-007 shall be submitted to the Test Agency responsible for conducting the approval tests defined in clause 5 of AIS-137 (Part 7). If the Test Agency determines that the submitted engine does not fully represent the engine family described in AIS-007, an alternative and, if necessary, an additional engine shall be submitted for test according to clause 5 below (p. 10/778).

According to AIS-137 (Part 7) (2019b), clause 4 specifies the engine type-approval process, as a separate technical unit, which shall comply with the following points:

1. For the purposes of type-approval and conformity of production certification, manufacturer’s engine range shall be divided into model families, consisting of parent engine model and its variant, and application for Type-approval shall be made in the proforma prescribed in AIS-007 as amended by time to time;
2. The determination of an engine family and the decision regarding parent engine shall be based on AIS-007. For the purpose of identification, the manufacturer shall designate families as F1, F2, F3, …, Fn;
3. The Test Agency shall decide the family, the parent model and its variants depending on the information provided by the manufacturer;
4. Testing of the parent model, shall, normally, be sufficient for type-approval of the family. The Test Agency has the option to carry out the testing of more than one model in the family to satisfy itself, subject to parent engine-concept as per Annex 1B of AIS-137 (Part 7);
5. At a later stage, if the manufacturer submits an application for type-approval of a model, the Test Agency shall ascertain whether the model can be classified as belonging to a family of model(s) already certified. If the model does not belong to family already certified, the Test Agency shall proceed with the testing of the model for type-approval. If the model belongs to a family already certified, the Test Agency shall decide whether the specific testing of the model is not required. In case the specific testing of the model is not required, the type-approval certificate for the family may be extended to include the model (pp. 10/778 – 11/778).

Finally, all details concerning the performance of specific emission tests for the current non-road mobile machinery emission standards can be found in clause 5 of AIS-137 (part 7) (ARAI, 2019b). In addition to the requirements for installation on the vehicle (clause 6), conformity of production (clause 7), production definitively discontinued or penalties for non-conformity of production (clauses 8 and 9) as well as all technical annexes accompanying the information of all mentioned clauses can be found in this standard document.

Labeling and registration of machinery

According to amendment No. 1 of 2017 to AIS-136: Product identification and numbering system for construction machinery and earthmoving vehicles / machinery, paragraph 2, product labelling is defined as the means of displaying the PIN and vehicle / machine details. (2017)No. 2, product labelling is defined as the means of displaying the PIN and characteristics of the machine.

The PIN is the primary marking on the vehicle or machine and the product label or plate and shall consist of 17 characters on a single horizontal line without breaks or separations between the characters. There shall be no additional signs, letters or characters before or after the preceding and ensuing symbols specified in paragraph 3.2 of the above standard. Zero (0) shall be used in the first positions of a field whenever fewer than the required number of characters is used, e.g., for model ‘AF3’ write 00AF3.

An acceptable symbol must immediately precede the first numeral or letter of the PIN and immediately follow the last numeral of the PIN.

The acceptable symbol shall be:

• An asterisk (*),
• Greater-than and less-than signs (> <),
• a corporate symbol, or
• a company logo.

Instead of greater-than and less-than signs, angle brackets or similar “vee” symbols horizontally pointing inwards may be placed on either side of the PIN.

The following characters only shall be used in the PIN:

• 1234567890
• ABCDEFGHJKLMNPRSTUVWXYZ
• Characters I, O and Q shall not be used.

Other codes that make up the PIN are defined according to AIS-136 Amendment No. 1 of 2017 (2017) as listed below:

1. World Manufacturer Code (WMC)

WMC shall consist of three alphanumeric (alpha or numeric) characters in positions 1, 2 and 3. The manufacturer shall follow the procedure in Annex A to secure a WMC listing. The registration process will require sufficient information to identify a manufacturer.

2. Vehicle / Machine Descriptor Section (MDS)

The MDS shall consist of five alphanumeric characters in positions 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8. The manufacturer is to determine the coding and sequence of the information. This field may be comprised of general descriptive attributes of the vehicle or machine. It is recommended that this field makes use of information that is readily easily on the vehicle / machine. For example, for a 493C model, a suitable character sequence would be 00493 or 0493C.

3. Vehicle or Machine Indicator Section (MIS)

The MIS shall designate a unique manufacturing number and consist of eight alphanumeric characters in positions 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16 and 17. Alpha or numeric characters may be used in positions 10, 11, 12 and 13. Only numerals shall be used in positions 14, 15, 16 and 17. The content of the MIS is at the discretion of the manufacturer. The manufacturer may choose to designate the year of manufacture. It is recommended that the year be indicated by the first character of the MIS (position 10). The recommended code to be used to identify the year is given in Table 1 of 2017 Amendment No. 1 to AIS-136.

4. Check Letter (CL)

The calculation to determine the CL shall be based on a formula provided by the website manager to the manufacturer (see Annex A of the 2017 Amendment No. 1 to AIS-136). As an alternative, the website manager may provide a non-calculated letter that the manufacturer may use in this position for vehicle/machine models having a volume of less than 100 units per year.

5. Duplication

The manufacturer shall ensure that the same 17-character PIN number shall not be reissued for 30 years. The manufacturer is responsible for maintaining a complete file of PIN records for all vehicles or machines using the assigned WMC.

The following example shows a PIN meeting the requirements of the AIS-136 standard.

Within the label the approval code associated with the certificate of compliance (CMRV type-approval number) is specified in accordance with the provisions of rule 126 of the Central Motor Vehicle Rules (CMVR). In this respect the label also reflects information on the emission level of the mobile machinery.

In March 2021, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways presented the policy of mandatory vehicle scrapping for commercial vehicles older than 15 years and passenger vehicles older than 20 years, if they fail to pass their corresponding emission and operational tests. However, the proposal is explicit in that it does not include agricultural machinery such as tractors, ploughs and harvesters to date (IBEF, 2021). The milestones set out in the draft policy require the rules for operational and scrapping tests to be in place by 1 October 2021. As for NRMM, it is only known that there will be a mandatory roadworthiness testing requirement for heavy-duty vehicles scheduled for October 2023; the same will be done for other types of vehicles by 1 October 2024 (DownToEarth, 2021).

Useful life periods

Compliance with emission standards must take into account the deterioration of emission control systems that occurs over the lifetime of the machines. In the case of India, this useful life is defined according to the power range and operating regime, as shown below:

Fuente: (Dieselnet, 2018).

Alternatively, to demonstrate emissions compliance, instead of performing ageing tests with the useful lives described above, manufacturers may use fixed emissions deterioration factors of 1.3 for CO, 1.3 for HC, 1.15 for NOx and 1.05 for PM (NRSC and NRTC) (Dieselnet, 2018).

No regulation has been identified that specifies operating and road circulation requirements for NRMM that are additional to those presented in the other sections of this document.

As explained in earlier sections of this document (see section 4.10), according to notification S.O.1248(E) (Government of India, 2004):

• use of public road by Construction Equipment Vehicles is incidental to its main off-road function. However, when the public road is being used regularly for carrying on commercial activities, then Construction Equipment Vehicles such as dumpers and excavators being used for such activities, shall be deemed as transport vehicles. Their driving on the road is allowed only for a short period of time at a speed not exceeding 50 km/h (Ministry of Road Transport & Highways, 1989).
• movement of power tillers on the road is incidental to its main function on the field and should only be used to travel from one cultivation area to another for a short period at a speed not exceeding 30 km/h (Ministry of Road Transport & Highways, 1989).

India has a conformity of production scheme described in AIS-137 (ARAI, 2019A), which aims to periodically verify that units being produced for use in the country are in conformity with the type-approval granted to the engine model. Details of this scheme can be found in the referenced standard and in summary form in chapter 7 of this document for this country.

However, according to ICCT (2018), while the BS (CEV/Trem) IV and V standards are based on the European Stage IV and Stage V standards, the Indian standard does not cover some aspects related to the control and inspection of mobile machinery that are specified in the equivalent European regulations. These include, among others, operational compliance testing using portable emission measurement systems (PEMS), off-cycle emission testing, production compliance procedures and technical requirements for NOx and particulate matter control measures.

The following table presents the main stakeholders involved in NRMM processes in India. Complementary aspects of these processes are presented below.

Fuente: elaboración propia.

Import

Regulatory entity: Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), through the Indian Trade Classification System (ITC), also known as Indian Trade Code, defines in Chapter 27 of the ITC HS Code 2017 the import policy for vehicles other than railways and tramway rolling stock, which includes tractors whether or not capable of being used for transportation (ITC (HS), 2017: Schedule 1- Import Policy, Chapter 87, Vehicles Other Than Railway Or Tramway Rolling-Stock, And Parts And Accessories Thereof. Notification, 2017).

Importer: “any natural or legal person established in the country who places on the market a vehicle, system, component, separate technical unit, part or equipment from a third country” (ARAI, 2016).

Manufacturing and distribution

Manufacturer: a person or body responsible to the approval authority for all aspects of vehicle type-approval and who must ensure conformity of production. It is not essential that the person or body is directly involved in all stages of the construction of the vehicle, system, component or separate technical unit which is the subject of the type-approval process. (ARAI, 2016). According to Act 126 of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989, every manufacturer of motor vehicles other than trailers and semi-trailers is required to submit the prototype of the vehicle he wishes to manufacture for approval by the Vehicle Research Development Establishment, Ministry of Defence, Government of India or the Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI), Pune, Central Farm Machinery Training and Testing Institute, Budni (MP), Indian Institute of Petroleum, Dehradun, and such other agencies, as may be specified by the Central Government, to be granted a certificate by the said agency against compliance with the provisions of these regulations (Ministry of Road Transport & Highways, 1989).

Testing Agency: organisation specified under Rule 126 of the CMVR Rules for compliance certification or any other testing agency approved by the CMVR Technical Committee for the purpose of testing parts, components, systems or vehicles. The testing agencies specified under Rule 126-A of the CMVR Rules 1989 will be responsible for carrying out the conformity of production (COP) tests in conjunction with the vehicle type-approval tests. Initially, the vehicle/engine manufacturer has the option to choose the Type-approval Testing Agency for his specific model from those listed in Rule 126-A of CMVR 1989. (ARAI, 2016).

Regulatory body: Ministry of Road Transport & Highways, through Chapter V of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989 sets standards for manufacture, equipment and maintenance of motor vehicles including construction machinery, such as dimension of vehicles, condition of tyres, brakes, steering gears, safety glass, reflectors, location of exhaust pipes, emission standards in operation and idling according to Bharat Stage IV standards (for agricultural and construction machinery from 2020) and their respective measurement tests, speed meters, noise reducers, number of chassis and engine, safety devices and other special provisions regarding the driver, the load being transported among others (Ministry of Road Transport & Highways, 1989). This ministry is also categorised as the nodal agency for the implementation of emission legislation in both aspects such as Conformity of Production (COP) and vehicle type-approval (ARAI, 2019a).

Registration

Registering authority: as per rule 47 of Chapter III of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules 1989, an application for registration of a motor vehicle shall be made in form #20 of these rules to the registering authority within a period of 70 days from the date of taking delivery of such vehicle, excluding the period of journey and shall be accompanied by the documents specified in this rule. As per rule 48, after verification and acceptance of the above documents, the registering authority shall issue a certificate of registration in Form #23 or #23-A, as may be specified in the Notification issued by the concerned State Government or Union Territory Administration within a period of 30 days from the receipt of such an application. Every registering authority shall, after registration of a vehicle including agricultural tractor vehicles, power tillers and construction equipment, upload the registration details of the vehicle on the portal https://www.vahan.nic.in/makermodel/ ( Ministry of Road Transport & Highways, 1989).

Sale 

Registering authority: as per rule 34 of Chapter III of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules 1989, an application for renewal of a trade certificate shall be made in Form #16 and shall be accompanied by the appropriate fee as specified in rule 81. Under regulation 35, on receipt of an application for the grant or renewal of a trade certificate in respect of a vehicle, the registering authority may, if satisfied that the applicant is bona fide dealer (or manufacturer of motor vehicles or a testing agency specified by regulation 126) and requires the certificates specified in the application, issue to the applicant one or more certificates, as the case may be, in Form #17 (within thirty days from the date of receipt of such application) and shall assign in respect of each certificate a trade registration mark (Ministry of Road Transport & Highways, 1989).

Distributor: “any natural or legal person in the supply chain, other than the manufacturer or importer, that makes a vehicle, system, component, separate technical unit, part or equipment available on the market” (ARAI, 2016).

Control and inspection

Standard setting and verification authority: the Automotive Industry Standards Committee (AISC), following its establishment by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, is the agency in charge of verifying safety in the design, construction, operation and maintenance of motor vehicles, as well as issuing the publication of standards and implementing testing facilities for these, including the procedures for vehicle type-approval and certification for agricultural tractors in accordance with the CMVR rules (ARAI, 2016).

End of life

Ministry of Road Transport and Highways: on March 18, 2021, Nitin Gadkari, Minister of Road Transport and Highways, announced the vehicle scrapping scheme which for now is planned to be applicable to commercial vehicles older than 15 years and passenger vehicles older than 20 years, on a mandatory basis, in case they fail to pass their corresponding emission and operational tests. Although the overall objective of the announced policy is to counteract high levels of urban air pollution and to stimulate the sale of new cars (as it continues to be affected during the post-COVID-19 revival phase), this policy will currently not apply to agricultural machinery such as tractors, power tillers and combine harvesters (IBEF, 2021).

Consultation documents (downloadable)