Tata has signed an MoU (memorandum of understanding) with the Maharashtra Government. Tata will set up a registered vehicle scrapping facility (RVSF) in the state. The scrapping facility will have the capacity of recycling 35,000 passengers and commercial vehicles. The MoU was recently signed at the Conference on Investment Opportunities in Highway, Transport, and Logistics in Mumbai, in the presence of the Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari. Maharashtra government’s Industries, Energy, and Labour Department will facilitate the necessary approvals.
The implications
Mumbai and Delhi come under the top 10 polluting cities in the world. With the help of this scraping facility, it will be easy to take these polluting vehicles off the road which will lead to a green future. Tata Motors will set up the scrapping facility with a partner. Scrapping older vehicles will have numerous benefits such as low import bills on scrap and crude oil, creating job opportunities for MSMEs, leading to a possible uptick in new vehicle sales for carmakers, encouraging safer and cleaner vehicles for consumers, and creating a sustainable environment.
Earlier this year, Tata Motors signed an MoU with Gujarat Government for setting up a scrapping facility in Ahmedabad. Tata Motors is not the only one to set up scrapping facilities. Companies like Maruti Suzuki and Toyota Tsusho group also inaugurated scrapping facilities in Noida, Uttar Pradesh in November. Mahindra Cero was the first one to set up a scrapping facility.
Official statement
Commenting on signing the MoU with the Maharashtra government, Girish Wagh, executive director, Tata Motors, said, “Besides the well-known benefits that appropriate vehicle scrapping offers – boosting the set-up of a circular economy – this initiative will also help in reiterating our commitment to strengthen our leadership in sustainable mobility space. We are proud to partner with the policymakers on this initiative.”
Also read: The 2022 Scrappage Policy: All You Need To Know
The government is looking to set up 50 to 70 scrapping facilities which will help to create job opportunities and help to take polluting cars off the road and scrap them in a safe manner. A fitness test will be done with the vehicles to determine whether they should be on the road or scraped.