Government to set fuel consumption standards for vehicles, notification issued

The government has suggested making it mandatory for light, medium, and heavy-duty motor vehicles of all types to conform to fuel consumption criteria as of April 2023 in order to minimise pollution and introduce more fuel-efficient vehicles. According to the statement, the continuous adherence to fuel efficiency standards must be confirmed in accordance with the manufacturing conformity procedure described in the Automotive Industry Standard 149.

"The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has issued a notification dated 1st July 2022, amending Rule 115 G of the Central Motor Vehicle Rules (CMVR) 1989, to include compliance with Fuel Consumption Standards (FCS), for light, medium and heavy-duty motor vehicles of various categories, manufactured in, or imported by, India," it said.

Prior to this notification, the statement said, compliance with the annual fuel consumption standard was applicable to vehicles of the M1 category (motor vehicle used for the carriage of passengers, comprising not more than eight seats, in addition to the driver's seat) with Gross Vehicle Weight (GVW) up to 3.5 tonnes.

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The MoRTH, in a statement, said the aim of this notification is to expand the ambit of vehicles for compliance with FCS and hence introduce more fuel-efficient vehicles.

The statement further said the date of applicability of this notification is April 1, 2023, and comments have been invited from all stakeholders within 30 days from the date of the notification.

With inputs from PTI