The Nagpur City Regional Transport Office (RTO) is bringing second-hand vehicle dealers under a digital tracking system by requiring them to obtain official authorisation and maintain online records of vehicles in their custody. The move aims to help authorities trace vehicle handovers, identify intermediaries and establish accountability during investigations into stolen vehicles and other offences. City’s big used-vehicles markets like the ones on Ghat road (four wheelers) and another in the Chitnis Park neighbourhood (two wheelers), are expected to get affected by the enforcement. “We are bringing used-vehicle dealers into the tracking system so that vehicle handovers and their subsequent use can be monitored and accountability fixed,” said Kiran Bidkar, Regional Transport Officer, Nagpur City. The move follows the Central Motor Vehicles (Twenty-Sixth Amendment) Rules, 2022, notified through G S R 901(E) on December 22, 2022, and effective from April 1, 2023. The Nagpur City RTO has communicated the requirements to dealers and met a group of local dealers to explain the rules and application process. The dealers responded positively to the change. Under the rules, dealers buying and selling registered vehicles must obtain an authorisation certificate in Form 29B from the registering authority. Applications must be submitted online in Form 29A, with a prescribed fee of Rs 25,000.

 

The certificate is valid for five years and must be displayed prominently at the business premises. Applicants must submit prescribed business and identity documents, including applicable Shop Act or Udyam registration, GST registration and PAN details, along with information about the business premises and its layout. Vehicle handovers must be recorded digitally: The owner and dealer must jointly submit Form 29C when a vehicle is handed over for resale, while Form 29D is required if the owner takes it back. Dealers must maintain an electronic inventory in Form 29E. Once Form 29C is submitted, the dealer is deemed to be the owner for the purposes specified under the rules and becomes responsible for the validity of relevant vehicle documents and incidents involving the vehicle. This clarifies responsibility while a vehicle is in the dealer’s custody.

 

Vehicles held for sale cannot be parked or stored on public roads: Their use is restricted to permitted purposes, including reasonable test drives and demonstrations, travel for repairs, and visits to inspection or pollution-testing centres. Dealers must record such journeys in an electronic trip register, Form 29F. Their authorisation number must be clearly displayed when a vehicle is used on a public road and remain legible from at least 15 metres. Buyers are advised to still verify registration documents, insurance, pending challans and ownership-transfer status while purchasing.