The Bombay High Court on Monday directed the transport department to state whether it faces a shortage of fitness inspectors of the Regional Transport Office (RTO) who issue certificates to vehicles in the state. The court was hearing a petition filed by an NGO named Suraksha Foundation,which brought up the issue of inadequacy of fitness inspectors in Pune. The petitioners claim that the inspectors often do not check vehicles themselves and do not inspect all necessary aspects of the vehicles. Appearing as an amicus curiae in the matter,lawyer Anil Sakhare pointed out that the officers are expected to check the efficiency of all vehicle parts including spark plug,clutch,headlights,etc. However,only state of the brakes is generally verified,he claimed. The petition points out that there are a mere 27 such inspectors in Pune and contends that they are hopelessly inadequate to perform their task efficiently. While hearing the case,the Bench of Justice D D Sinha and Justice V K Tahilramani observed that it was the duty of the Transport Commissioner to supervise the workings of the department. If something goes wrong,the Commissioner will be responsible, the judges said. The job of the inspector is extremely important from the point of view of ensuring safety of the vehicles. It is therefore incumbent on him to scrupulously examine vehicles, Justice Sinha said. The court has now asked the department to file an affidavit stating whether vehicles across the state are,in fact,personally checked by inspectors. The department has also been asked to state how much time is required to inspect each vehicle. The case will now be heard after five weeks.
