Authorities plan road safety drive

Mumbai: The Maharashtra government is planning action against vehicle owners who convert to Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) and Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), a cheaper fuel, at illegal retrofitting agencies to save a few rupees.

Though no one has so far gone to jail for using illegal LPG/CNG conversion kits, authorities have woken up to the danger of using them after a van caught fire due to the use of a makeshift fuel kit.

The fire killed four school children and severely injured eight others, spreading shock and anger across the city. The incident has also raised the issue of passenger vans and even autorickshaws being used to ferry school children.

State Transport Commissioner Shyamsunder Shinde said, "I've directed the three regional transport offices to keep an eye on unauthorised fitting centres and strict action will be taken against offenders."

Transport

Flying squads of the Regional Transport Authority (RTA) have already started seizing vehicles with unauthorised kits.

The Maruti Omni van being that caught fire had LPG kits fitted below the passenger seats, a violation of RTA rules. The vehicle owner had also placed a wooden bench to accommodate more children.

Not many schools have an adequate fleet of buses to pick-up and drop school children. Therefore, students have to depend on public transport or find their own with many parents opting for vans and autorikshaws, that are often overcrowded, posing an even greater danger to the young.

Errant owners

The government is still pondering the issue of legalising vans, manufactured by a certain company, to carry students. At the same time, the government has to ensure that vehicles owners or roadside garages do not indulge in fitting unsafe and unauthorised LPG/CNG kits. It has to be seen how the authorities go about punishing errant vehicle owners and drivers.

According to the RTA guidelines, all commercial vehicles like taxis, autorikshaws or trucks plying in the city have to be fitted with a CNG kit from an authorised retrofitting centre. Many motorists are converting to LPG and CNG fuel which is cheaper than petrol, saving 45-50 per cent on fuel.

When undertaking this conversion, vehicle owners have to inform the Road Transport Office, get their vehicles fitted at a state-approved agency, and get the change notified in his or her registration book.