With an aim to reduce pollution and introduce more fuel-efficient vehicles, the Union government has proposed to make it mandatory for light, medium and heavy duty motor vehicles of various categories to comply with fuel consumption standards from April 2023, according to an official statement.
“The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has issued a notification dated 1st July 2022, amending Rule 115 G of the Central Motor Vehicle Rules (CMVR) 1989, to include compliance with Fuel Consumption Standards (FCS), for light, medium and heavy duty motor vehicles of various categories, manufactured in, or imported by, India,” it said.
The continued compliance to the standards shall be verified as per the procedure of conformity of production, outlined in Automotive Industry Standard 149.
Prior to this notification, the statement said, compliance with annual fuel consumption standard was applicable to vehicles of M1 category with Gross Vehicle Weight (GVW) up to 3.5 tonnes.
Prior to this latest notification, compliance with the annual fuel consumption standard was limited to motor vehicles of the M1 category (motor vehicle used for carriage of passengers, comprising not more than 8 seats, in addition to the driver’s seat) with gross vehicle weight up to 3.5 tonnes.
The aim of this notification is to expand the ambit of vehicles for compliance with the fuel consumption standards, and hence introduce more fuel-efficient vehicles, a Ministry of Road Transport & Highways statement said on Wednesday.
The date of applicability of the notification is April 1, 2023.
Comments have been invited from all stakeholders, within 30 days from the date of the said notification.
