Ahmedabad: Following the discovery of malpractice, police complaints will be filed against two more automated vehicle testing centres in Gujarat, including one under Vastral RTO, and another under Mehsana RTO.
Instructions have been issued to the respective RTOs.
Transport officials revealed that 16 automated testing centres across the state were found to be issuing fitness certifications based on mere photoshopped vehicle images, leading to show-cause notices for all 16 facilities.
Investigations revealed that a disproportionate number of Rajasthan-registered vehicles received fitness certificates in Gujarat. Analysis of CCTV footage and toll plaza fast tag records confirmed that these vehicles never entered the state. Some vehicles were even located in different states when their certifications were issued.
Officials noted that many such vehicles lacked fast tags, which are mandatory for heavy vehicles registered in Gujarat. Additionally, severely deteriorated vehicles, incapable of traveling to Gujarat, also received fitness certificates. Instead of the official fees ranging from Rs 200 to Rs 600, these centres charged Rs 3,000 to Rs 5,000 for issuing certificates based solely on manipulated photographs provided by vehicle owners. Permit and road tax records further confirmed that these vehicles neither obtained temporary Gujarat permits nor paid local road taxes. tnn