[coolclouds]

Originally Posted by wildsdi5530

@coolclouds and @roomy: usually challan is never made out for offence committed. They just put a common offence.

As long as we are sure about the offence made, its better to insist on challan with actual offence rather than paying for something else.

[maddjango]

Sorry for the late update from my side. I had to travel quite a bit in the last few days. I managed to get out of the mess after spending a day at the RTO office

Things that helped me -

Toll receipt from the week before all the way from trivandrum to bangalore.
Insurance issued from Trivandrum branch one month back.
Receipt of last service also from Honda workshop in trivandrum.
PUC taken in Jan from Trivandrum.

In spite of all the above, the guys in the office was not convinced since I had been working in Bangalore the last few years. Thankfully I had also got the RC card for an i10 that I had purchased last year with Karnataka registration. I explained that I use this car in Bangalore and the Honda City was got from trivandrum only because of an emergency and it would be immediately returned. This cooled them down somewhat and I was directed to the RTO in charge of the circle. Big boss heard my side and asked them to close the case with a warning that I would have to pay full tax next time.

On the whole not an experience i would care to repeat. Thankfully got a friend along who could talk well in kannada. Though I can understand kannada, my spoken kannada is not too good. That helped too in dealing with the clerks and attenders. They invariably helped us along in the right direction.

The drive to catch outstation cars is still going on in full speed. I spotted them outaide Wipro twice, once in the morning and once in the evening. God help the guys who get caught up in the morning!

Originally Posted by maddjango

I am also in the same situation. I had got my car from trivandrum last weekend since I couldn't get a bus ticket for the last minute trip. And was planning to drive back tomorrow. Now looks like I have to spend tomorrow in RTO office. I showed toll receipt, PUC certificate, even insurance. Everything was done in Trivandrum. The RTO inspector who caught me was unconvinced and not too pleased. He took my RC book, license and insurance paper . They are specifically targetting techies, as they were standing outside wipro gate on sarjapur road.

[benbsb29]

Originally Posted by maddjango

Big boss heard my side and asked them to close the case with a warning that I would have to pay full tax next time.

On the whole not an experience i would care to repeat.

In short, what they are trying to say is that your car is not welcome in KA anymore? Who are they to stop free movement of people as guaranteed by the Indian Constitution?

If someone can prove adherence to the law (??!!) they do not deserve to be harassed solely owing to some narrow minded law makers!

[binaiks]

Today morning had seen a squad starting off from Electronic City RTO at 6.45 in the morning! Wonder if these guys would ever bother leaving their beds so early for something really required.

Off-Topic: Kerala has started verifying addresses of PY registered cars running in Kerala. A special squad formed for the purpose is verifying if the owner really resides in PY territory. The penalty for cars caught on the wrong foot is that they need to pay LTT according to the new tax slab! News on The Hindu.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by binaiks

Today morning had seen a squad starting off from Electronic City RTO at 6.45 in the morning! Wonder if these guys would ever bother leaving their beds so early for something really required.

Catching hold of one other-state car and making him pay LTT is equivalent to giving almost 200 five hundred rupee fine to motorists. Could take weeks or months for achieving this through normal offences like signal jumping etc.

Here they just need to put in few days of struggle and they can relax till next March without worrying about targets.

[anujmishra]

Originally Posted by benbsb29

In short, what they are trying to say is that your car is not welcome in KA anymore? Who are they to stop free movement of people as guaranteed by the Indian Constitution?

If someone can prove adherence to the law (??!!) they do not deserve to be harassed solely owing to some narrow minded law makers!

Well, this may sound harsh but this is reality now due to umpteen number of violators who actually working in Bangalore for decades and drive out of state cars.
There was nice rule before but people started taking advantage of it. Do you think this is correct morally or ethically? Due to this behavior RTO may have issued such harsh notification.

Yes, this will trouble all genuine tourists and visitors to some extent but there was no other way for them.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by anujmishra

Well, this may sound harsh but this is reality now due to umpteen number of violators who actually working in Bangalore for decades and drive out of state cars. Do you think this is correct morally or ethically?

How many KA registered cars head out to TN and KL every weekend or alternate weekend? Many people working in working in Bangalore cover 15 - 20 kms per day in the city going to office and back. And 400- 600 kms per weekend or alternate weekend travelling to TN/ Kerala for weekend drives.

But I guess that is 'morally and ethically' justified because they are not 'working' in KL/ TN.

[suresh_gs]

Originally Posted by anujmishra

Well, this may sound harsh but this is reality now due to umpteen number of violators who actually working in Bangalore for decades and drive out of state cars.
There was nice rule before but people started taking advantage of it. Do you think this is correct morally or ethically? Due to this behavior RTO may have issued such harsh notification.

Yes, this will trouble all genuine tourists and visitors to some extent but there was no other way for them.

The basic problem here is the ridiculously high tax slab structure followed by pathetic infrastructure that is forcing people to violate. I am not justifying their actions but what is the state govt doing on the above mentioned aspects.
During S M Krishna's tenure as CM of KA, the tax slab was hiked so as to improve infrastructure. This was very evident so long as he was there.
After him the subsequent CM's turned a deaf year to improving bangalore with the infrastructure taking a hit. The same problem continues till date.

As regards the action by RTO, i would condemn the act. On what basis did they modify the rules for other state vehicles plying in KA from 11 months to 30 days.
The urgency shown by the RTO guys now should have been there right from day one.

[coolclouds]

Originally Posted by anujmishra

Yes, this will trouble all genuine tourists and visitors to some extent but there was no other way for them.

RTO should have some different mechanism to assess if a vehicle is in Bangalore for more than allowed period. If a genuine visitor is able to produce all relevant proof to state that he is on visiting, they should leave the vehicle without causing further trouble. MVD/Traffic department installed so many cameras in city and they can track outside cars plying on a regular basis easily.

A person known to me was using a KL registered Sokda way back in 2002/2003 in Bangalore. RTO guys kept an eye on this vehicle shuttling between kids school and Mantri apartment off Bannarghatta road for over a month and caught him with solid proof and directed him to pay tax.

[bdman]

Originally Posted by Rajith

At last fined for rs 500/- for smoking inside car while driving !!.

I am sure his car was putting out more smoke than he was..

Originally Posted by anujmishra

Well, this may sound harsh but this is reality now due to umpteen number of violators who actually working in Bangalore for decades and drive out of state cars.

IMHO, it should be absolutely ok to drive your car anywhere India, regardless of where you git it registered. We are, after all, one country. We don't have to stop and pay tax to the central govt every time we get on the National Highway, do we?

If we were on an annual road tax cycle, then it would be fair to start paying tax to the correct State at renewal. But, the "life time road tax" is just criminal robbery. It just makes it easier for the States to fleece you over and over again.

[benbsb29]

Originally Posted by anujmishra

Well, this may sound harsh but this is reality now due to umpteen number of violators who actually working in Bangalore for decades and drive out of state cars.
There was nice rule before but people started taking advantage of it. Do you think this is correct morally or ethically? Due to this behavior RTO may have issued such harsh notification.

Yes, this will trouble all genuine tourists and visitors to some extent but there was no other way for them.

Anuj, as i said in my post, if a person can prove he has not been staying in Bangalore for an extended period of time at a stretch, he is not an offender. Freedom of movement is guaranteed by the constitution, and it is not upto a state government to upturn that. Once the neighbouring states RTOs start playing the same game, one can forget any driving expeditions to the Himalayas, or Ooty drives or any tourist place in a different state for that matter. It would appear then that any vacation is an invitation for state RTOs to seize your car.

Lets take an example where you were on one of your driving trips to KL, and your Safari was confiscated despite you pleading you were on a tourist trip. If you observe how it panned out with the member above, his car was first confiscated, and he then tried to prove he was not overstaying. Imagine yourself in his place, with your vehicle confiscated in a new place and when with family. I surely do not wish that any of us have to go through such a situation, ever.

To repeat what i had said in an earlier post of mine on this thread :
Give people a chance to pay for a yearly tax option, and you would see people gladly pay up. Despite this if they don't, then wield the stick.

P.S. : I do not drive a non-KA car in Bangalore. My non-KA registered bike has already paid up the road tax, which has not been claimed back from the previous state of registration.

[ajmat]

If they want to effectively enforce a solution acceptable to all, I would propose the following.

1: Set up an RTO post at every entry point entering Bangalore. People stop and buy an entry token displayed in the windscreen valid for two weeks for Rs 100. It can be renewed once only

2: Also offer options of three months, six months upto one year. If you are around for more than a year, you are deemed to be living in Bangalore unless you have some clear documentation from your employer or you pay a much higher rate. for these cases, you should have some strong documentation that you are actually a domicile of another state.

This is just an idea, again there are loopholes - supercar owners will trade their cars in frequently but it can result in a fair revenue collected from visitors for using local roads (not that it is great value).

Singapore - make you hire a road pricing transponder if you drive over

Austria and Switzerland make you buy a Vignette to use their roads

The best solution would be to do away with LTT and charge road tax levy on the fuel! But most of us have paid the LTT

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by ajmat

1: Set up an RTO post at every entry point entering Bangalore. People stop and buy an entry token displayed in the windscreen valid for two weeks for Rs 100. It can be renewed once only.

So, maximum someone can visit Karnataka is 4 weeks? (As per current amendment as well!)

We cannot have relatives/ parents/ spouse etc visiting us from another state for 2-3 months without being forced to pay life time tax for 15 years? How is it fair for us (other state guys working here) to be treated this way only in Karnataka?

[ajmat]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

So, maximum someone can visit Karnataka is 4 weeks? (As per current amendment as well!)

We cannot have relatives/ parents/ spouse etc visiting us from another state for 2-3 months without being forced to pay life time tax for 15 years? How is it fair for us (other state guys working here) to be treated this way only in Karnataka?

Did you see my second point? Create differential options for people visiting for upto a year.

[aroonanand]

Originally Posted by ajmat

If they want to effectively enforce a solution acceptable to all, I would propose the following.

1: Set up an RTO post at every entry point entering Bangalore. People stop and buy an entry token displayed in the windscreen valid for two weeks for Rs 100. It can be renewed once only

2: Also offer options of three months, six months upto one year. If you are around for more than a year, you are deemed to be living in Bangalore unless you have some clear documentation from your employer or you pay a much higher rate. for these cases, you should have some strong documentation that you are actually a domicile of another state.


The best solution would be to do away with LTT and charge road tax levy on the fuel! But most of us have paid the LTT

How different is it from the permits / entry tax that cabs or commercial vehicles pay for inter state travel? Why have LTT at all then, all vehicles including private vehicles can pay annual tax in the state of registration and then pay entry tax into every state that it enters.

Isnt this contradictory to the right of movement for personal vehicles across India (RTO's actions are also in the same direction though)?

IMHO, the best solution would be to link the systems of RTOs across the country (if we can have a centralized PAN / Aadhaar system, why not for RTO) and if there is a movement from a state to another, a pro-rata credit should be transferred from the state of registration (transferor state) to the transferee state and any difference to be collected or credited within 30 days of an application being made. So if one shifts from Chennai to Bangalore, one has to pay a difference of ~5-6% to the Karnataka RTO. On the contrary, if one were to move from Bangalore to Chennai, it would result in a refund as the tax rates in Chennai are lower. This becomes simpler if LTT rates are standardized across India as there would be no refund / collection but just a transfer between RTOs.

Logically this makes sense and I would say owners will also not mind abiding it as the system is fair, as you pay or get refund depending on applicable state taxes. But RTOs will not like it as they do not like to part with what they have collected. Especially the greedy ones like Karnataka who are keen on just collections rather than anything else.

Till such time there is a seamless and integrated system, these issues will come up.