Vijayawada: RTA to take action against 2 firms over BS-3 scam

Vijayawada: The state transport department will initiate action on the two companies for illegally registering 154 banned BS-3 vehicles in Nagaland and selling them in different parts of the country. The two companies based in Anantapur district produced fake documents to register vehicles as BS-4 vehicles. The companies had purchased 154 vehicles from Ashok Leyland company, which sold the outdated BS 3 vehicles as scrap. The transport department collected all evidence in connection with the purchase, illegal registration and sale of 154 vehicles and ready to take action.

Joint commissioner of transport (JCT) A S V Prasada Rao addressing a media conference at the transport department head office here on Tuesday said two companies, Jathadhara Industries and C Gopala Reddy & Co of Anantpur district bought the scrap vehicles. He said J C Uma Reddy and J C Asmit Reddy are the directors of a company.

The joint commissioner said that Jathadhara company purchased 50 vehicles and C Gopala Reddy & Co bought 104 vehicles. Of the total, 101 vehicles were sold in Andhra Pradesh and were being plied in the state, 33 vehicles are plying in 33 Karnataka, 15 in Telangana, three in Nagaland one in Tamil Nadu, one in Chhattisgarh and another three are yet to be identified.

According to Prasada Rao, these companies produced fake documents to insure the vehicles as confirmed by those companies. The JCT said the transport department cancelled the registration of 95 vehicles plying in the state and the state government had sent a detailed report to the Union transport ministry about the scam carried out by the two companies. He said plying of outdated vehicles is very dangerous and threat to the people and passengers.

Referring to insurance of these vehicles, Prasada Rao said 47 vehicles were insured with United India Insurance company, 12 vehicles were insured with Oriental Insurance company and 12 vehicles with HDFC Insurance company. Insuring the vehicles with fake documents is a crime and stern action would be taken against the accused, he added.

The RTA official said 12 vehicles belonging to Jathadhara company and four vehicles of to C Gopala Reddy & Co were plying in Telangana and these vehicles were yet to be traced and seized.

Giving details of seized vehicles, he said 62 vehicles were seized in Andhra Pradesh while 48 vehicles were seized in Anantapur district, two each in Guntur and Kadapa, five vehicles in Chittoor, four in Kurnool, one vehicle in Nellore.