Crackdown on out-of-State luxury vehicles sans permit in Kozhikode

Joint MVD and Traffic police inspections in Kozhikode target luxury vehicles from other States violating registration rules.

Joint inspections by the Motor Vehicles department (MVD) and Traffic police squads have been intensified in Kozhikode to track luxury vehicles registered in other States and operating here beyond the permitted period.

MVD sources said that operating non-Kerala vehicles for more than 11 months without updating the Registration Certificate would be treated as an offence under existing rules. They added that vehicle owners who fail to secure the mandatory No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the Regional Transport Officers concerned were deliberately evading Kerala road taxes and registration fees.

“There have been several incidents in the past where luxury car owners were fined heavily for the long-term operation of non-Kerala vehicles. Vehicles registered in Union Territories were mostly involved in such violations,” said a MVD inspector. He added that checks were intensified following the Vellayil accident in which a youth was killed by a luxury vehicle registered in Telangana.

The Traffic police said that in the event of a serious accident involving out-of-State vehicles, legal issues would pose a challenge for the injured or other vehicle owners. They added that many such vehicles lacked proper legal records, insurance coverage, pollution control certificates, and other ownership documents.

“In a flash inspection conducted last week, the MVD and police squads caught 39 people driving without a licence,” said a member of the Road Safety Enforcement squad in the district. He also pointed out that 172 drivers were caught misusing high-beam lights.

MVD and police sources said flash inspections would continue with the support of nine special enforcement squads, focusing on enforcing speed limits, fitness standards, and carriage capacity regulations.