PCB vehicle entry tax: stringent norms,streamlined collection

The board decided to recall the tender as the amount of Rs 4.3 crore quoted annually came up after a negotiation process with the contractors did not meet the expectations of the board. The board has been incurring losses of about Rs 56,000 everyday after 18 employees of a private contractor were arrested in September this year for overcharging commercial vehicles using fake receipts. From October,the PCB was collecting the VET by deploying its own staff and the collection was being carried out in shifts.

Speaking to The Indian Express,Brigadier Rajbir Singh,president of PCB said that the board would streamline the entire VET collection system on a war footing to bring in more revenue to the board. “The VET collection hit the roadblock after the police nabbed the employees deputed by the contractor for collecting excessive amounts. The VET receipts will also be scrutinized on a regular basis,” he said.

“ We will be installing CCTV cameras at all the check points and will be introducing proper lighting facilities at night. This will allow the board to monitor the situation more effectively. We will also push PCB flying squads to carry out surprise checks. The board will be keeping track of the situation,” he said. He said that the PCB also plans to construct a divider so that the heavy vehicles are parked inside the checkpoints and do not disrupt the traffic flow of other vehicles. “This will also ensure that no vehicle goes unnoticed by the collection staff,” he added.

PCB chief executive officer DK Malik said that the fresh tenders would be invited within a month. “The re-tendering process will begin soon and we will be able to appoint a new contractor in a month’s time. Till then,the PCB staff will be carrying out the collection,” he said.

The board received a gross income of Rs 72,77,245 by way of VET for the period from October 3 to December 2.