15. Licence to drive motor vehicles, the property of the [Federal] Government.– (1) The authority specified in Part A of the Fourth Schedule may grant licences, valid throughout the Province, to persons who have completed their eighteenth year to drive motor vehicles which are the property or for the time being under the exclusive control of the [Federal] Government.
(2) A licence issued under this section shall specify the class or classes of vehicles which the holder is entitled to drive and the period for which he is so entitled.
(3) A licence issued under this section shall not entitle the holder to drive any motor vehicle except a motor vehicle which is the property or for the time being under the exclusive control of the [Federal] Government.
(4) The authority issuing any licence under this section shall at the request of Government furnish such information respecting any person to whom a licence is issued as Government may at any time require.
16. Power of licensing authority to disqualify for holding a licence.– (1) If a licensing authority is satisfied after giving him an opportunity of being heard that any person–
(a) is a habitual criminal or a habitual drunkard, or
(b) is using or has used a motor vehicle in the commission of a cognizable offence, or
(c) has by his previous conduct as driver of a motor vehicle shown that his driving is likely to be attended with danger to the public,
it may, for reasons to be recorded in writing, make an order disqualifying that person for a specified period for holding or obtaining a licence.
[(1-A) If a licensing authority is satisfied, after giving him an opportunity of being heard, that in respect of a person an order under sub-section (2) of this section, or a declaration under sub-section (1) of section 18, has been made on more than one occasion, it may, for reasons to be recorded in writing, make an order cancelling the licence granted to that person and disqualifying him for holding or obtaining a licence for such period as it may deem fit.]
(2) Upon the issue of any such order the person affected, if he is the holder of a licence, shall forthwith surrender his licence to the licensing authority making the order, if the licence has not already been surrendered, and the licensing authority shall keep it until the disqualification has expired or has been removed.
(3) Any person aggrieved by an order made by a licensing authority under this section may, within thirty days of the service on him of the order, appeal to the prescribed authority, and such appellate authority shall give notice to the licensing authority and hear either party if so required by that party and may make such inquiry into the matter as it thinks fit. An order made by any such appellate authority shall be final.
17. Power of Regional Transport Authority to disqualify.– (1) A Regional Transport Authority constituted under Chapter IV may, for reasons to be recorded in writing and subject to any prescribed conditions, declare any person disqualified for a specified period, for holding or obtaining a licence to drive a transport vehicle in the Province.
(2) A Regional Transport Authority making a declaration under sub-section (1) shall, if the person so disqualified is the holder of a licence, furnish a copy of the declaration to the licensing authority by whom the licence was granted, and if the person so disqualified is not the holder of a licence, to the licensing authority within whose jurisdiction he ordinarily resides.
(3) Upon the making of a declaration under sub-section (1), the person affected, if he is the holder of a licence shall forthwith surrender his licence to the licensing authority by whom the licence was granted, and the licensing authority shall keep it until the disqualification has expired or has been removed.
(4) Any person aggrieved by an order made under sub-section (1) may, within thirty days of the receipt of intimation of such order, appeal against the order to the prescribed authority.
18. Power of Court to order disqualification.– (1) Where a person is convicted of an offence under this Ordinance, or of an offence in the commission of which a motor vehicle was used, the Court by which such person is convicted may, subject to the provisions of this section, in addition to imposing any other punishment authorised by law, declare the person so convicted to be disqualified for such period as the Court may specify for holding any licence or for holding a licence to drive a particular class or description of vehicles:
Provided that the Court shall not order the disqualification of an offender convicted for the first or second time of an offence punishable under section 98.
(2) The Court shall order the disqualification of an offender convicted of an offence punishable under section 99 or section 100 and such disqualification shall be for a period of not less than six months.
(3) The Court shall order the disqualification of an offender convicted of an offence against the provisions of clause (c) of sub-section (1) of section 92 or of section 94 and such disqualification shall be for a period of not less than one month.
(4) The Court shall unless for special reasons to be recorded in writing, if thinks fit to order otherwise, order the disqualification of an offender–
(a) who having been convicted of an offence punishable under section 101 is again convicted of an offence punishable under that section;
(b) who is convicted of an offence punishable under section 103;
(c) who is convicted of an offence punishable under section 106:
Provided that the period of disqualification shall not exceed, in the cases referred to in clauses (a) and (b), two years, and, in the case referred to in clause (c), one year.
(5) A Court ordering the disqualification of an offender convicted of an offence punishable under section 101 may also direct that the offender shall, whether he has previously passed the test of competency to drive, specified in the Third Schedule or not, remain disqualified until he has, subsequent to the making of the order of disqualification passed that test to the satisfaction of the licensing authority.
(6) The Court to which an appeal lies from any conviction of an offence of the nature specified in sub-section (1) may set aside or vary any order of disqualification made by the Court below, and the Court to which appeals ordinarily lie from any Court may set aside or vary any order of disqualification made by that Court, notwithstanding that no appeal lies against the conviction in connection with which such order was made.
19. Effect of disqualification order.– (1) A person in respect of whom any disqualification order is made under this Chapter shall be debarred to the extent and for the period specified in such order from holding or obtaining a licence and the licence, if any, held by such person at the date of the order shall cease to be effective during such period.
(2) The operation of a disqualification order made under section 18 shall not be suspended or postponed while an appeal is pending against such order or against the conviction as a result of which such order is made, unless the appellate Court so directs.
(3) Any person in respect of whom any disqualification order has been made may, at any time after the expiry of six months from the date of the order, apply to the Court or other authority by which the order was made, to remove the disqualification; and the Court or authority, as the case may be, may, having regard to all the circumstances of the case, remove or vary the order of disqualification:
Provided that where an application has been made under this section a second application thereunder shall not be entertained before the expiry of a further period of three months.
20. Endorsement.– (1) The Court or authority making an order of disqualification shall endorse or cause to be endorsed upon the licence, if any, held by the person disqualified, particulars of the order of disqualification and of any conviction for an offence in respect of which an order of disqualification is made; and particulars of any removal or variation of an order of disqualification made under sub-section (3) of section 19 shall be similarly so endorsed.
(2) Any person accused of an offence specified in the Fifth Schedule or any other offence involving the driving of a motor vehicle shall, when attending the Court trying him for such offence bring with him his licence if it is in his possession.
(3) The Court by which any person is convicted of an offence specified in the Fifth Schedule or any other offence involving the driving of a motor vehicle shall, whether or not an order of disqualification is made in respect of such conviction, endorse or cause to be endorsed particulars of such conviction on any licence held by the persons convicted.
21. Transfer of endorsement and issue of licence free from endorsement.– (1) An endorsement on any licence shall be transferred to any new or duplicate licence obtained by the holder thereof until the holder becomes entitled under the provisions of this section to have a licence issued to him free from endorsement.
(2) Where a licence is required to be endorsed and the licence is at the time not in the possession of the Court or authority by which the endorsement is to be made, then–
(a) if the person in respect of whom the endorsement is to be made is at the time the holder of a licence he shall produce the licence before the Court or authority within such time as the Court or authority may fix, or
(b) if, not being then the holder of a licence, he subsequently obtains a licence, he shall within five days after obtaining the licence, produce it before the Court or authority for the purpose of endorsement;
and if the licence is not produced within the time specified, the person in respect of whom the endorsement is to be made, shall be deemed to have committed an offence punishable under section 97 and the licence shall on the expiry of such time be of no effect until it has been produced for the purpose of endorsement.
(3) A person whose licence has been endorsed shall if during the period of five years since the last endorsement was made no further order of endorsement has been made against him be entitled, on surrendering his licence and on payment of the prescribed fee, to receive a copy of the licence free from all endorsements; and if the endorsement was only in respect of exceeding a speed limit, he shall be entitled to have a copy of the licence free from endorsement issued on the expiration of one year from the date of the order directing the endorsement to be made:
Provided that in computing the said period of five years and one year respectively, the time during which the said person was disqualified for holding or obtaining a licence shall be excluded.
(4) When a licence is endorsed by or an order of endorsement is made by any Court, it shall send particulars of the endorsement or order, as the case may be, to the licensing authority by which the licence was last renewed and to the licensing authority which granted the licence.
(5) Where the holder of a licence is disqualified by the order of any Court for holding or obtaining a licence, the Court shall take possession of the licence and forward it to the licensing authority by which it was granted or last renewed and that authority shall keep the licence until the disqualification has expired or has been removed and the person entitled to the licence has made a demand in writing for its return to him:
Provided that, if the disqualification is limited to the driving of a motor vehicle of a particular class or description, the Court shall endorse the licence to this effect and shall send a copy of the order of disqualification to the licensing authority by which the licence was granted and shall return the licence to the holder.
(6) Where on an appeal against any conviction or order of a Court which has been endorsed on a licence, the appellate Court varies or sets aside the conviction or order, the appellate Court shall so inform the licensing authority by which the licence was last renewed and the licensing authority which granted the licence, and shall amend or cause to be amended the endorsement of such conviction or order.
22. Power to make rules.– (1) Government may make rules for the purpose of carrying into effect the provisions of this Chapter.
(2) Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such rues may provide for all or any of the following matters, namely:-
(a) the appointment, jurisdiction, control and functions of licensing authorities and other prescribed authorities;
(b) the conduct and hearing of appeals that may be preferred under this Chapter, the fees to be paid in respect of such appeals and the refund of such fees; provided that no fee so fixed shall exceed two rupees;
(c) the issue of duplicate licences to replace licences lost, destroyed or mutilated, the replacement of photographs which have become obsolete and the issue of temporary licences to persons receiving instruction in driving and the fees to be charged therefor;
(d) the conditions subject to which a Regional Transport Authority may disqualify a person for holding a licence to drive a transport vehicle;
(e) the medical examination and testing of applicants for licences and of drivers and the fees to be charged therefor;
(f) the fees to be paid for the grant and renewal of licences;
(g) the exemption of prescribed persons, or prescribed classes of persons from payment of all or any portion of the fees payable under this Chapter;
(h) the granting by registered medical practitioners of the certificates referred to in sub-section (2) of section 4, sub-section (3) of section 7 and sub-section (1) of section 13;
(i) the communication of particulars of licences granted by one licensing authority to other licensing authorities;
(j) the control of schools or establishments for the instruction of drivers of motor vehicles and the acceptance of driving certificates issued by such schools or establishments as qualifying the holder for exemption from Part I of the test specified in the Third Schedule; and
(k) the exemption of drivers of road-rollers from all or any of the provisions of this Chapter or of the rules made thereunder.
CHAPTER III
REGISTRATION OF MOTOR VEHICLES
23. Motor vehicles not to be driven without registration.– (1) No person shall drive any motor vehicle and no owner of a motor vehicle shall cause or permit the vehicle to be driven in any [place] unless the vehicle is registered in accordance with this Chapter and the vehicle carries a registration mark displayed in the prescribed manner.
Explanation– A motor vehicle shall not be deemed to be registered in accordance with this Chapter if the certificate of registration has been suspended or cancelled.
(2) Nothing in this section shall apply to a motor vehicle while being driven within the limits of jurisdiction of a registering authority to or from the appropriate place of registration for the purpose of being registered under section 24, 26, 40 or 41 or to a motor vehicle exempted from the provisions of this Chapter while in the possession of a dealer in motor vehicles.
24. Registration where to be made.– (1) Subject to the provisions of section 26, section 40 and section 41, every owner of a motor vehicle shall cause the vehicle to be registered by the registering authority of the [district] in which he has his residence or place of business or in which the vehicle is normally kept.
(2) Government may, by rule made under section 43 require that any certificate of registration issued under the provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1939, shall be presented within a prescribed period, to a specified registering authority for entry therein of such further particulars of the vehicle as that authority may, for the purposes of this Ordinance, deem fit to record.
25. Registration how to be made.– (1) An application by or on behalf of the owner of a motor vehicle for registration shall be in Form F as set forth in the First Schedule, shall contain the information required by that Form, and shall be accompanied by the prescribed fee.
(2) The registering authority shall issue to the owner of a motor vehicle registered by it a certificate of registration in Form G as set forth in the First Schedule and shall enter in a record to be kept by it particulars of such certificate.
[(3) The registration authority shall assign to the vehicle a distinguishing mark (in this Ordinance referred to as the registration mark) of such description as may be prescribed:
Provided that any motor vehicle, whether the property of Government or not, declared by the Federal Government to be meant for the use of the President or the Prime Minister, or by a Provincial Government to be meant for the use of the Governor or the Chief Minister of the Province, shall not be assigned a registration mark, and shall instead display such other mark as may be specified by the Federal Government or the Provincial Government, as the case may be.
(4) The prescribed authority shall make available to the owner of the vehicle, on payment of the prescribed [price], a set of two plates made of such material, colour and dimensions as may be prescribed.
(5) Government may, by a notification in the official Gazette, direct that motor vehicles registered before the commencement of [this Ordinance], shall be assigned new registration marks within such period and according to such procedure as may be specified in the notification.]
26. Temporary registration.– (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in section 24, the owner of a motor vehicle may apply in the prescribed manner to any registering authority to have the vehicle temporarily registered and thereupon such registering authority shall issue to the owner of the vehicle a temporary certificate of registration and assign to the vehicle a temporary mark of registration.
(2) A registration made under this section shall be valid only for a period of one month, and shall not be renewable.
27. Production of vehicle at the time of registration.– The registering authority may, before proceeding to register a motor vehicle, require the person applying for registration of the vehicle to produce the vehicle either before itself or such authority as Government may, by order appoint for this purpose in order that the registering authority may satisfy itself that the particulars contained in the application are true and that the vehicle complies with the requirements of Chapter VI and the rules made thereunder.
28. Refusal of registration.– (1) The registering authority may, for reasons to be recorded in writing, refuse to register any motor vehicle, if–
(a) the vehicle is mechanically so defective as to render its use unsafe; or
(b) the vehicle does not comply with the requirements of Chapter VI, or of the rules made thereunder; or
(c) the applicant fails to furnish particulars of any previous registration of the vehicle; or
(d) the applicant fails to produce before the registering authority–
(i) where the vehicle has been previously registered under this Ordinance or under any other law relating to the registration of motor vehicles in force in any place in Pakistan, a letter of authority or a certificate of transfer from the person shown as owner in the last registration certificate in respect of such vehicle; or
(ii) where the vehicle has been imported from any place outside
(2) where a registering authority refuses to register a motor vehicle, it shall furnish to the applicant free of cost a copy of the reasons for such refusal.
29. Effectiveness in
Provided that there is in force in respect of the vehicle a certificate conforming to and containing substantially the same particulars as the certificate of registration in Form G as set forth in the First Schedule issued by such competent authority in respect of such vehicle.
(2) A certificate complying with the requirements of the proviso to the last preceding sub-section shall be effective throughout the Province as if it were a certificate of registration issued under this Ordinance and the provisions of this Ordinance shall apply thereto.
(3) Sub-section (1) shall not apply to any motor vehicle previously registered in the Province if the certificate of registration of the vehicle is, for the time being, suspended or cancelled for any reason other than that of permanent removal of the vehicle from the Province.
30. Assignment of fresh registration mark on removal to another Province.– (1) When a motor vehicle not required to be registered in the Province by virtue of sub-section (1) of section 29 is kept in the Province for a period exceeding twelve months, the owner of the vehicle shall apply to the registering authority, within whose jurisdiction the vehicle then is, for the assignment of a new registration mark and shall present the certificate of registration of the vehicle to that registering authority.
(2) The registering authority, to which application is made under sub-section (1), shall assign the vehicle a registration mark [referred to in Section 25] to be carried thenceforth on the vehicle and shall enter the mark upon the certificate of registration of the vehicle before returning it to the applicant and shall also, in communication with the registering authority by whom the vehicle was previously registered, arrange for the transfer of the registration of the vehicle from the records of that registering authority to its own records.
(3) Government may make rules under section 43 requiring the owner of a motor vehicle not registered within the Province, which is brought into or is for the time being in the Province, to furnish to the prescribed authority such information with respect to the motor vehicle and its registration as may be prescribed.
31. Change of residence or place of business.– (1) If the owner of a motor vehicle ceases to have his place of business at the address recorded in the certificate of registration of the vehicle, he shall, within thirty days of such change of address, intimate his new address to the registering authority by which the certificate of registration was issued, or, if the new address is within the jurisdiction of another registering authority, to that other registering authority, and shall at the same time forward the certificate of registration to the registering authority in order that the new address may be entered therein.
(2) A registering authority other than the original registering authority making any such entry shall communicate the altered address to the original registering authority.
(3) Nothing in sub-section (1) shall apply where the change of the address recorded in the certificate of registration is due to a temporary absence not intended to exceed six months in duration or where the motor vehicle is neither used nor removed from the address recorded in the certificate of registration.
32. Transfer of ownership.– (1) Within thirty days of the transfer of ownership of any motor vehicle registered under this Chapter, the transferee shall report the transfer to the registering authority within whose jurisdiction he ordinarily resides and shall forward the certificate of registration of the vehicle to that registering authority together with the prescribed fee in order that particulars of the transfer of ownership may be entered therein.
(2) A registering authority other than the original registering authority making any such entry shall communicate the transfer of ownership to the original registering authority.
[32-A. Cancellation of certificate of registration of vehicles registered in the Tribal Areas of Baluchistan in certain cases.– If the owner of a motor vehicle registered by a registering authority having jurisdiction in the Tribal Areas of the Province of Baluchistan ceases to reside or to have his place of business in those areas, or sells or otherwise transfers the motor vehicle to any person who does not reside or have his place of business in those areas, the certificate of registration and registration mark of the vehicle shall stand cancelled as from the day on which he ceases to reside or to have his place of business in those areas or, as the case may be, sells or otherwise transfers the vehicle to such person.
33. Alteration in motor vehicle.– (1) If a motor vehicle is so altered that the particulars contained in the certificate of registration are no longer accurate, the owner of the vehicle shall within fourteen days of the making of any such alteration, report the alteration, to the registering authority within whose jurisdiction he resides and shall forward the certificate of registration of the vehicle to that authority together with the prescribed fee in order that particulars of the alteration may be entered therein:
Provided that it shall not be necessary to report any change in the unladen weight of the motor vehicle consequent on the addition or removal of fittings or accessories, if such change does not exceed two per cent of the weight entered in the certificate of registration.
(2) A registering authority other than the original registering authority making any such entry shall communicate the details of the entry to the original registering authority.
34. Suspension of registration.– (1) A registering authority or any other prescribed authority may, after giving the owner an opportunity of making any representation he may wish to make, for reason to be recorded in writing, suspend the registration certificate of a motor vehicle, if–
(a) the vehicle is not insured as required by law; or
(b) any fees or taxes payable in respect of the vehicle under this Ordinance or the rules framed thereunder, or the West Pakistan Motor Vehicles Taxation Act, 1958, have remained unpaid for a period exceeding three months from the date such fees or taxes were due; or
(c) in the case of a public service vehicle, it is not covered by a valid certificate of fitness; or
(d) the authority has reason to believe that the vehicle is in such a condition that its use in a public place would constitute a danger to the public, or that it fails to comply with the requirements of Chapter VI or of the rules made thereunder; or
(e) a substantially false statement has been made in the application for registration of the vehicle; or
(f) the registration certificate has been deliberately defaced or mutilated or unauthorised additions or alterations have been made therein;
and such suspension shall remain in force till the vehicle is duly insured as required by law, or the fees or taxes have been paid, or a valid certificate of fitness in respect of the vehicle has been obtained, or the defects are remedied to the satisfaction of such authority, or the false statement in the application for registration has been replaced by a correct statement in the prescribed manner, as the case may be.
(2) A registering authority or any prescribed authority may, after giving the owner an opportunity of making any representation he may wish to make and for reasons to be recorded in writing, suspend for a period not exceeding six months, the certificate of registration of a vehicle, if it is satisfied that–
(i) the vehicle is used for subversive activities against the State; or
(ii) the vehicle is used for hire or reward without obtaining a permit from the Provincial or a Regional Transport Authority as required under section 44; or
(iii) the vehicle has been found by a Court to have been used by the owner of the vehicle or with his knowledge or connivance in the commission of a cognizable offence punishable with imprisonment of not less than five years.
(3) An authority other than a registering authority shall when making a suspension order under sub-section (1), intimate in writing the fact of suspension and the reasons therefor to the registering authority within whose jurisdiction the vehicle is at the time of the suspension.
(4) A registering authority or other prescribed authority suspending the registration certificate of a motor vehicle under this section shall communicate the fact of suspension together with the reasons therefor in writing to the owner of the vehicle, and the owner shall thereupon forthwith surrender to that authority the certificate of registration and any token or card issued to authorise the use of the vehicle in a public place.
(5) Where the registration of a motor vehicle has been suspended under sub-section (1) for a continuous period of not less than one month, the registering authority, within whose jurisdiction the vehicle was when the registration was suspended, shall, if it is not the original registering authority, inform that authority of the suspension, and when the suspension has continued without interruption for a period of not less than six months, the registering authority within whose jurisdiction the vehicle was when the registration was suspended may, if it is the original registering authority, cancel the registration and the entry relating to the vehicle in its records, and if it is not the original registering authority, shall forward the certificate of registration and any token or card surrendered under sub-section (4) to that authority which may cancel it forthwith.
(6) The certificate of registration and any token or card surrendered under sub-section (4) shall be returned to the owner when the order suspending registration is rescinded.
35. Cancellation of registration.– (1) If a motor vehicle has been destroyed or has been rendered permanently incapable of use, the owner shall, as soon as may be, report the fact to the registering authority within whose jurisdiction he resides and shall forward to that authority the certificate of registration of the vehicle together with any token or card issued to authorise the use of the vehicle in a public place.
(2) The registering authority shall, if it is the original registering authority, cancel the registration and the certificate of registration, or, if it is not, shall forward the report and the certificate of registration, to the original registering authority and that authority shall cancel the registration and the certificate of registration.
(3) Any registering authority may order the examination of another vehicle within its jurisdiction by such authority as Government may by order appoint and, if upon such examination and after giving the owner an opportunity to make any representation he may wish to make it is satisfied that the vehicle is in such a condition that its use in a public place would constitute a danger to the public and that it is beyond reasonable repair, may, for reasons to be recorded in writing, cancel the registration of the vehicle.
(4) If a registering authority is satisfied that a motor vehicle has been permanently removed out of the Province, it shall cancel the registration of the vehicle.
(5) A registering authority or any prescribed authority cancelling the registration of a motor vehicle under this section shall communicate the fact, together with the reasons therefor, in writing to the owner of the vehicle and the owner of the vehicle shall thereupon forthwith surrender to that authority the certificate of registration of the vehicle and any token or card issued to authorise the use of the vehicle in a public place.
(6) A registering authority making an order of cancellation under this section shall, if it is the original registering authority, cancel the certificate of registration and the entry relating to the vehicle in its records, and if it is not the original registering authority, intimate in writing the fact of cancellation and the reasons therefor, and forward the certificate of registration and any token or card surrendered to it under sub-section (6) to the original registering authority, and that authority shall cancel the certificate of registration and the entry relating to the motor vehicle in its records.
(7) The expression “original registering authority” in this section and in sections 31, 32, 33 and 34 means the registering authority in whose records the registration of the vehicle is recorded.
36. Appeals.– (1) Any owner of a motor vehicle aggrieved by an order of refusal to register a motor vehicle made under section 28 or to issue a certificate of fitness made under sub-section (1) of section 39 or by an order of suspension or cancellation of registration made under section 34 or 35 or by an order of cancellation of the fitness certificate made under sub-section (3) of section 39 may, within thirty days of the date on which he has received notice of such order, appeal against the order in the prescribed manner to the prescribed authority.
(2) The appellate authority shall give notice of the appeal to the original authority, and after giving opportunity to the original authority and the appellant to be heard either personally or by pleader in the appeal, pass such orders as is thinks fit.
37. Special requirement for registration of transport vehicles.– (1) A registering authority shall refuse to register any transport vehicle, other than a motor cab unless the application for registration is accompanied by a document in Form H as set forth in the First Schedule signed by the maker of the vehicle or an assembler duly authorised by the maker in this behalf stating the maximum laden weight and maximum axle weights for which the vehicle is and the several axles are designed.
(2) Where a transport vehicle or chassis, as the case may be, has affixed to it a metal plate, bearing the stamp of the maker or assembler and identified as appertaining to the particular vehicle or chassis to which it is attached, which contains the particulars specified in sub-section (1), that plate may at the discretion of a registering authority be deemed to be the document referred to in that sub-section.
38. Special particulars to be recorded on registration of transport vehicles.– A registering authority, when registering a transport vehicle other than a motor cab, shall enter in the record of registration and shall also enter in the certificate of registration of the vehicle the following particulars, namely:-
(a) the unladen weight of the vehicle;
(b) the number, nature and size of the tyres attached to each wheel;
(c) the laden weight of the vehicle and the axle weights pertaining to the several axles thereof, determined in accordance with the
(d) if the vehicle is used or adapted to be used for the carriage of passengers solely or in addition to goods, the number of passengers for whom accommodation is provided,
and the owner of the vehicle shall have the said particulars exhibited in the prescribed manner on the vehicle.
39. Certificate of fitness of transport vehicles.– (1) Subject to the provision of section 40, a transport vehicle shall not be deemed to be validly registered for the purposes of section 23, unless it carries a certificate of fitness in Form I as set forth in the First Schedule, issued by the prescribed authority, to the effect that the vehicle complies for the time being with all the requirements of Chapter VI and the rules made thereunder; and where the prescribed authority refuses to issue such certificate, it shall supply the owner of the vehicle with its reasons in writing for such refusal.
(2) Subject to the provisions of sub-section (3), a certificate of fitness shall remain effective for three years unless a shorter period, not being in any case less than six months, is specified in the certificate by the [authority issuing the certificate] [:]
[Provided that in case of a permit issued under section 60 (1) (a), a certificate of fitness shall remain effective for a period of six months and on the expiry of that period the permit shall be deemed to be suspended until a new certificate of fitness has been obtained.]
(3) The [* * *] prescribed authority may, for reasons to be recorded in writing, cancel a certificate of fitness at any time, if satisfied that the vehicle to which it relates no longer complies with all the requirements of this Ordinance and the rules made thereunder; and on such cancellation, the certificate of registration of the vehicle and any permit granted in respect of the vehicle under Chapter IV shall be deemed to be suspended until a new certificate of fitness has been obtained.
40. Registration of vehicles, the property of the [Federal] Government.– (1) The authorities specified in Part B of the Fourth Schedule may register any motor vehicle which is the property or for the time being under the exclusive control of the [Federal] Government; and any vehicle so registered shall not, so long as it remains the property or under the exclusive control of the [Federal] Government, require to be registered otherwise under this Ordinance.
(2) A transport vehicle registered under this section shall carry a certificate of fitness in Form I as set forth in the First Schedule issued by the authority referred to in sub-section (1).
(3) An authority registering a vehicle under sub-section (1) shall assign to it a registration mark in accordance with the provisions contained in the Fourth Schedule and shall issue a certificate in respect of the vehicle that the vehicle has been registered under this section.
(4) If a vehicle registered under this section ceases to be the property or under the exclusive control of the [Federal] Government, the provision of section 24 shall thereupon apply.
(5) The authority registering a vehicle under sub-section (1) shall furnish to Government all such information regarding the general nature, over-all dimensions, and axle weight of the vehicle as Government may at any time require.
[41. Special registration of vehicles.– Notwithstanding anything contained in this Chapter and the Sixth Schedule, Government may, by rules, prescribe a special procedure for the registration of any class, or type or category of motor vehicles, or motor vehicles belonging to a specified class of persons, and such rules may among other matters provide for–
(a) the appointment of a special registration authority for such motor vehicles; and
(b) special registration mark to be carried by such motor vehicles.]
42. Application of Chapter III to trailers.– (1) The registration mark assigned to a trailer shall be displayed in the prescribed manner on the side of the vehicle.
(2) No person shall drive a motor vehicle to which a trailer is or trailers are attached unless the registration mark of the motor vehicle so driven is displayed in the prescribed manner on the trailer or on the last trailer in the train, as the case may be.
43. Power to make rules.– (1) Government may make rules for the purpose of carrying into effect the provisions of this Chapter.
(2) Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such rules may provide for all or any of the following matters, namely:-
(a) the conduct and hearing of appeals that may be preferred under this Chapter, the fees to be paid in respect of such appeals and the refund of such fees;
(b) the appointment, functions and jurisdiction of registering and other prescribed authorities;
(c) the issue of certificates of registration and certificates of fitness and duplicate of such certificates to replace certificates lost, destroyed or mutilated;
(d) the temporary registration of motor vehicles, and the issue of temporary certificates of registration and mark;
(e) the manner in which registration marks and the particulars referred to in section 38, and other prescribed particulars shall be exhibited;
[(ee) the authorising of suitable automobile workshops to issue certificates of fitness, the licensing of such workshops, the equipment and apparatus to be maintained by such workshops, their inspection, the terms and conditions and the period for which, and the authorities by whom, the licences may be granted and renewed, and the fees to be paid for the grant and renewal of the licences;]
(f) the fees to be charged for the issue or alteration of certificates of registration, for certificates of fitness, for registration marks, and for the examination or inspection of motor vehicles, and the refund of such fees;
(g) the exemption of prescribed persons or prescribed classes of persons from payment of all or any portion of the fees payable under this Chapter;
(h) the forms, other than those set forth in the First Schedule, to be used for the purposes of this Chapter;
(i) the communication between registering authorities of particulars of certificates of registration and by owners of vehicles registered outside the Province of particulars of such vehicles and of their registration;
(j) the particulars to be furnished by the owner of any motor vehicle to the registering authority, upon the transfer of possession of the motor vehicle under the terms of a hiring agreement;
(k) the extension of the validity of certificates of fitness pending consideration of applications for their renewal;
(l) the exemption from the provisions of this Chapter and the conditions and fees for exemption, of motor vehicles in the possession of dealers;
(m) the exemption of road-rollers, graders and other vehicles designed and used solely for the construction, repair and cleaning of roads from all or any of the provisions of this Chapter and the rules made thereunder, and the conditions governing such exemption; and the exemption of light goods vehicles from the provisions of section 39 and the conditions governing such exemption.
CHAPTER IV
CONTROL OF TRANSPORT VEHICLES
44. Transport vehicles not to be used or driven without permit.– (1) No owner of a transport vehicle shall use or permit the use of, and no driver of a transport vehicle shall drive or cause or permit to be driven, the vehicle in any public place, save in accordance with the conditions of a permit authorising the use or driving of the vehicle in such place granted or countersigned by a Regional or Provincial Transport Authority:
Provided that a stage carriage permit shall, subject to any conditions that may be specified in the permit, authorise the use of the vehicle as a contract carriage:
Provided further that a stage carriage permit may, subject to any conditions that may be specified in the permit, authorise the use of the vehicle as a goods vehicle either when carrying passengers or not:
Provided also that a public carrier’s permit shall, subject to any conditions that may be specified in the permit authorise the holder to use the vehicle for the carriage of goods for or in connection with a trade or business carried on by him.
(2) In determining, for the purposes of this Chapter, whether a transport vehicle is or is not used for the carriage of goods for hire or reward–
(a) the delivery or collection by or on behalf of the owner of goods sold, used or let on hire or hire-purchase in the course of any trade or business carried on by him other than the trade or business of providing transport;
(b) the delivery or collection by or on behalf of the owner of goods which have been or which are to be subjected to a process or treatment in the course of a trade or business carried on by him; or
(c) the carriage of goods in a transport vehicle by a manufacture of or agent or dealer in such goods whilst the vehicle is being used for demonstration purposes,
shall not be deemed to constitute a carrying of the goods for hire or reward; but the carriage in a transport vehicle of goods by a person not being a dealer in such goods who has acquired temporary ownership of the goods for the purpose of transporting them to another place and there relinquishing ownership shall be deemed to constitute a carrying of the goods for hire or reward.
(3) Sub-section (1) shall not apply–
(a) to any transport vehicle owned by or on behalf of the [Federal] or any Provincial Government and used for public purposes unconnected with any commercial enterprise;
(b) to any transport vehicle owned by a local authority or by a person acting under contract with a local authority and used solely for road cleaning, watering or conservancy purposes;
(c) to any emergency vehicle;
(d) to any transport vehicle used for any other public purpose prescribed in this behalf;
(e) to any transport vehicle used solely for conveyance of corpses;
(f) to any transport vehicle used for towing a disabled vehicle or for removing goods from a disabled vehicle to a place of safety;
(g) to any school bus; or
(h) to any trailer used for any purpose other than the carriage of goods for hire or reward when drawn by a motor vehicle constructed for the carriage of not more than six passengers excluding the driver.
(4) Subject to the provisions of sub-section (3), sub-section (1) shall, if Government by rules made under section 69 so prescribes, apply to any motor vehicle adapted to carry more than nine passengers excluding the driver.
[44-A. Permission to drive transport vehicles registered in other Provinces.– A transport vehicle registered in any other Province may be allowed to be driven within the Province–
(a) in case of a transport vehicle for which a permit has been issued, by general or special resolution of the Provincial Transport Authority; and
(b) in any other case, by general or special order of the Government;
subject to such terms and conditions as may be specified by the Provincial Transport Authority or the Government in the said resolution or order, as the case may be.]
45. Power of Government to control road transport.– (1) Government, having regard to–
(a) the advantages offered to the public, trade and industry by the development of motor transport; and
(b) the desirability of–
(i) co-ordinating road and rail transport;
(ii) preventing the deterioration of the road system; and
(iii) preventing uneconomic competition among transport vehicles,
and after having heard the representatives of the interests affected and having consulted the Provincial and Regional Transport Authorities concerned, may, for reasons to be recorded in writing, by a notification in the official Gazette–
(i) prohibit or restrict throughout the Province or in any area or on any route within the Province, subject to such conditions as it may think desirable, the conveying of long distance goods traffic generally or of prescribed classes of goods, by private or public carriers; or
(ii) fix maximum or minimum fares or freights for stage carriages and public carriers to be applicable throughout the Province or within any area or on any route within the Province.
(2) Notwithstanding anything in sub-section (1), Government may, by notification under this sub-section, cancel generally or in relation to a specified area any permit or class of permits granted under this Chapter in respect of transport vehicles in order to enable the Corporation constituted under section 70 to use its transport vehicles on the routes thus rendered vacant:
Provided that the provisions of section 22 of the West Pakistan General Clauses Act, 1956 as to previous publication shall apply to a notification under this sub-section, and for the purposes of the said section, a notification under this sub-section shall be deemed to be a rule made under an Act.
(3) Government may direct the Provincial Transport Authority or a Regional Transport Authority not to grant or issue any permit (if already granted but not issued) or to restrict the grant of fresh permits to a specified number on any route or routes or part of a route on which the Corporation is already operating motor transport or intends to do so.
Explanation– For the purpose of this sub-section “route” includes any combination of routes or an elongation of a route.
[45-A. Power of Government to regulate stage carriages.– (1) The Government may, in order to regulate stage carriages on a route or in an area, for the purposes of–
(a) reducing traffic congestion;
(b) providing an efficient, adequate, reliable, dignified, safe, integrated, economical and properly coordinated road transport system;
(c) providing adequate seating arrangements for women and disabled; and
(d) satisfying any other requirement for proper transportation system;
conduct or cause to be conducted a periodical survey in order to determine all or any of the following:
(i) the need for alignment or realignment of a route or routes;
(ii) the particular type or kind of motor vehicle (including nature, capacity, quality and age) which can be used as a stage carriage on the route;
(iii) the number of permits for the stage carriages required to be issued for the route;
(iv) the measures to control and reduce environmental pollution and traffic congestion;
(v) the need for preservation and future expansion of roads and commuter demands;
(vi) the time period for which any of these arrangements may be adequate; and
(vii) any other factor necessary for the development of a proper road transport system.
(2) The Government may, subject to sub-section (1), by notification in the official Gazette–
(a) declare a route to be a specified route;
(b) determine the technical specifications (including capacity, quality and age) of the stage carriages which shall ply on the specified route;
(c) fix the number of permits required to be issued in respect of a specified route; and
(d) determine qualifications and conditions for the grant of a permit for the specified route which may be based on the following:
(i) competence of the applicant;
(ii) viable business plan of the applicant;
(iii) the minimum number of stage carriages that an applicant shall have to ply or operate on the specified route;
(iv) the services that an applicant shall have to establish, operate and maintain on the specified route;
(v) the requisite arrangements for the maintenance and operations of the stage carriages of an applicant;
(vi) the nature, value, extent and duration of a performance guarantee which an applicant shall be required to furnish; and
(vii) any other reasonable qualifications and conditions as may be prescribed in the interest of the development of the road transport system.]
46. Transport authorities.– (1) Government shall by notification in the official Gazette, constitute–
(i) a Provincial Transport Authority to exercise and discharge throughout the Province the powers and functions specified in sub-section (6); and
(ii) Regional Transport Authorities to exercise and discharge throughout such areas (in this Chapter referred to as regions) as may be specified in the notification, in respect of each Regional Transport Authority, the powers and functions conferred by or under this Chapter on such authorities:
Provided that the area specified as the region of a Regional Transport Authority shall in no case be less than an entire district.
(2) The Provincial Transport Authority or a Regional Transport Authority shall consist of such [persons] as Government may think fit to appoint, but no person who has any financial interests whether as proprietor, employee or otherwise in any transport undertaking, shall be appointed or continue as a member of the Provincial or a Regional Transport Authority.
Explanation– A person shall not be deemed to have any financial interest in a transport undertaking for the purposes of this section merely by reason of the fact that he is a member or an employee of the Railway Board or is a person in the service of
(3) If any person who is appointed as member of the Provincial or a Regional Transport Authority has any such interest in a transport undertaking as is referred to in sub-section (2), he shall forthwith give notice of the same in writing to Government.
(4) If any member of the Provincial or a Regional Transport Authority during his term of office acquires any such interest in a transport undertaking as is referred to in sub-section (2), he shall within four weeks of acquiring such interest give notice of the same in writing to Government, and shall on the giving of such notice cease to be such member.
(5) If any person becomes a member or continues to remain as a member of the Provincial or a Regional Transport Authority in contravention of the provisions of this section he shall be deemed to have committed an offence against this Ordinance.
(6) The Provincial Transport Authority shall exercise and discharge the following powers and functions, namely:-
(i) to co-ordinate and regulate the activities and policies of the Regional Transport Authorities;
(ii) to perform the duties of a Regional Transport Authority–
(a) where there is no such authority; or
(b) where there is such authority, if it thinks fit so to do and if so required by that authority; [or]
[(c) where the Government directs it to do so;]
(iii) to settle all disputes and decide all matters on which differences of opinion arise between the Regional Transport Authorities; and
(iv) to discharge such other functions as may be prescribed.
(7) The Provincial Transport Authority may, subject to such conditions as may be prescribed, issue to a Regional Transport Authority such orders and directions of a general character in respect of road transport as it may deem necessary, and the Regional Transport Authority shall give effect to all such orders and directions.
(8) The Provincial Transport Authority and any Regional Transport Authority, if authorised in this behalf by rules made under section 69, may delegate such of its powers and functions to such authority, or person and subject to such restrictions, limitations and conditions as may be prescribed by the said rules.
47. General provisions as to applications for permits.– (1) Every application for a permit shall be made to the Regional Transport Authority of the region or of one of the regions in which it is proposed to use the vehicle or vehicles and, if the applicant resides or has his principal place of business in any one of those regions, to the Regional Transport Authority of that region.
(2) Nothing in sub-section (1) shall apply to road transport services operated by the Corporation.
[(3) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-sections (1) and (2), where a notification has been issued by the Government under section 45-A, the Provincial Transport Authority shall invite applications for the grant of permits through advertisement in the press indicating the route, specification of the stage carriages, the number of permits to be issued for that route and the qualifications and conditions determined in such notification.]
[48. Application for stage carriage permit.– (1) An application for a permit to use a motor vehicle as a stage carriage (in this Chapter referred to as a stage carriage permit) shall contain the following particulars, namely:-
(a) the name and address of the applicant;
(b) the registration number, type, model and seating capacity of the vehicle in respect of which the application is made;
(c) the route or routes on which [* * *] it is intended to use the vehicle; and
(d) such other matters as may be prescribed.
(2) An application for a permit shall be accompanied by an affidavit of the applicant to the effect that he is the actual owner of the motor vehicle in respect of which the application is made [and that no Government servant has any financial interest in such motor vehicle, either directly or indirectly.]
Explanation– For the purposes of this Chapter, “actual owner” means a person or a body of persons having proprietary rights in a motor vehicle, acquired by way of purchase, gift, inheritance, or under a hire-purchase agreement, or as a result of the settlement of a lawful claim.
[(3) No application for grant of permit shall be made unless the vehicle in respect of which the permit is required conforms to the age prescribed for the purpose].
[(4) An application for the grant of the permit of a specified route shall be supported by sufficient material showing that the applicant is qualified for the grant of the permit in terms of the qualifications determined by the Government under section 45-A.]
[49. Procedure for grant of stage carriage permits. (1) Where an application for a stage carriage permit conforming to the provisions of this Ordinance has been received by the Provincial or the Regional Transport Authority, as the case may be, it may, on the payment of the prescribed fee, and furnishing of a bank guarantee to its satisfaction for the payment of any compensation which the applicant may be required to pay under the provision of this Ordinance, grant a permit to the applicant in the prescribed form in respect of motor vehicle specified in the application:
Provided that where any such permit granted in respect of the vehicle for which the permit is applied for has been suspended or cancelled, the Provincial or Regional Transport Authority–
(a) shall not, during the period of suspension of the previous permit, grant a permit in respect of the vehicle; and
(b) may, in case of a previous permit, for reasons to be recorded in writing, a copy whereof shall be granted to the applicant free of cost, refuse to grant a permit for a period not exceeding three months whereafter the applicant may make a fresh application for the grant of a stage carriage permit in respect of the same vehicle.
(2) Condition of furnishing a bank guarantee under sub-section (1) may be dispensed with if–
(a) the applicant furnishes security, equalling the requisite bank guarantee, issued by an insurance company duly registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission of
(b) the applicant furnishes a valid membership certificate issued by the West Pakistan Transporters Mutual Assistance Cooperative Society Limited.]
[50. Conditions for grant of stage carriage permits.– (1) A condition shall be inserted in every stage carriage permit that in case of death of, or injury to, a passenger in the vehicle to which the permit relates arising out of the use of the vehicle, there shall be paid by the permit holder as compensation–
(a) in case of death of a passenger, a sum of rupees eight thousand to the legal representatives of the deceased passenger; and
(b) in case of an injury to a passenger, the amount specified in the Thirteenth Schedule, to the injured passenger.
(2) A Regional Transport Authority may attach to a stage carriage permit any prescribed condition or any or all of the following conditions, namely:-
(i) that the service specified in the permit shall be commenced not later than a specified date and period;
(ii) that a specified number of return trips of daily service shall be maintained on the route or routes specified in the permit and that they may be varied only in accordance with the specified conditions;
(iii) that the stage carriage shall be used only on specified routes [* * *];
(iv) that copies of the fare-table and time-table approved by the Regional Transport Authority shall be exhibited on the stage carriage and at its stands and stops on the route, and that the timetable and fare-table so exhibited shall be observed;
(v) that not more than a specified number of passengers and not more than a specified amount of luggage shall be carried on any stage carriage at any one time;
(vi) that within municipal limits and in such other areas and places as may be prescribed, passengers shall not be taken up or set down except at specified places;
(vii) that the permit holder shall maintain such accounts and records of the operation of the services and shall submit such financial and statistical returns as may be required by the Regional or Provincial Transport Authority, and that the records and accounts shall be produced for inspection before the person or persons authorised in this behalf by the Regional or Provincial Transport Authority; and
(viii) that tickets shall be issued to passengers for the fares paid.
(3) The Provincial Transport Authority or a Regional Transport Authority may regulate the timings of departure of stage carriages, whether they belong to one or more owners.]
51. Application for contract carriage permit.– [(1)] An application for a permit to use a motor vehicle as a contract carriage (in this Chapter referred to as a contract carriage permit) shall contain the following particulars, namely:-
[(a) the name and address of the applicant;]
[(aa)] the type and seating capacity of the vehicle;
(b) the area for which the permit is required;
(d) any other particulars which may be prescribed.
[(2) An application under sub-section (1) shall be accompanied by an affidavit of the applicant to the effect that no Government servant has, either directly or indirectly, any financial interest in the vehicle in respect of which permit is applied for.]
52. Procedure of Regional Transport Authority in considering application for contract carriage permits.– A Regional Transport Authority, shall, in deciding whether to grant or refuse a contract carriage permit, have regard to the extent to which additional contract carriages may be necessary or desirable in the public interest; and shall also take into consideration any representations made by persons already holding contract carriage permits in the region or by any authority or police authority in the region to the effect that the number of contract carriages for which permits have already been granted is sufficient for or in excess of the needs of the region or any area within the region.
53. Power to restrict the number of contract carriages and impose conditions on contract carriage permits.– [(1)] A Regional Transport Authority may, after consideration of the matters specified in section 52–
(a) fix the number of contract carriages generally or contract carriages of any specified type for which contract carriage permits may be granted in the region or any specified area within the region;
(b) refuse to grant a contract carriage permit or grant a contract carriage permit in respect of a particular contract carriage or a particular service of contract carriages in such form as it may, subject to the rules made under section 69, deem fit: Provided that no person shall be granted a contract carriage permit for any area not specified in the application made by him under section 51;
(c) attach to the contract carriage permit any prescribed condition or all or any one of the following conditions, namely:-
(i) that the contract carriage or contract carriages shall be used only in a specified area or on a specified route or routes;
(ii) that except in accordance with specified conditions no contract or hiring may be entered into for transporting goods or passengers in the contract carriage or carriages outside a specified area;
(iii) that subject to specified conditions, goods may be carried in a contract carriage to the exclusion of or in addition to passengers;
(iv) that in the case of motor cabs, specified fares shall be charged and a table of fares displayed on the vehicle;
(v) that in the case of vehicles other than motor cabs specified rates of hiring not exceeding specified maximum shall be charged;
(vi) that in the case of motor cabs, a specified weight of passengers, luggage shall be carried free of charge and a specified charge shall be made for any luggage in excess of the luggage to be carried free of charge;
(vii) that a taxi meter shall be fitted to every motor cab;
(viii) that specified conditions of the permit shall be liable to be varied, and that further specified conditions may be attached to the permit by the authority at any time on due notice being given to the permit holder;
(ix) that the conditions of the permit shall not be departed from save with the approval of the authority.
[(2) There shall be inserted in every contract carriage permit, [other than a permit in respect of a contract carriage constructed, adapted or used for carrying not more than six passengers including the driver] a condition that in case of death of, or injury to, a passenger in the vehicle to which the permit relates arising out of the use of the vehicle, there shall be paid by the permit holder as compensation–
(a) in case of death of a passenger, a sum of rupees eight thousand to the legal representatives of the deceased passenger; and
(b) in case of an injury to a passenger, the amount specified in the Thirteenth Schedule, to the injured passenger.]
54. Application for private carriers permit.– [(1)] An application for a permit to use a transport vehicle for the carriage of goods for or in connection with a trade or business carried on by the applicant (in this Chapter referred to as a private carrier’s permit) shall contain the following particulars, namely:-
(a) the type and carrying capacity of the vehicle;
(b) the nature of the goods which the applicant expects normally to carry in connection with his trade or business;
(c) the area for which the permit is required; and
(d) any other particulars which may be prescribed.
[(2) An application under sub-section (1) shall be accompanied by an affidavit of the applicant to the effect that no Government servant has, either directly or indirectly, any financial interest in the vehicle in respect of which permit is applied for.]
55. Procedure of Regional Transport Authority in considering application for a private carrier’s permit.– (1) Where an application conforming to the provisions of section 54 for a private carrier’s permit has been received by the Regional Transport Authority, it shall, if satisfied that the vehicle or vehicles for which the permit is required will not be used except in connection with the business of the applicant, such business not being transport business, grant the applicant, on the payment of the prescribed fee, a permit in the prescribed form in respect of the vehicle or vehicles specified, in the application:
Provided that the Regional Transport Authority may, for reasons to be recorded in writing, a copy whereof shall be granted free of cost to the applicant, refuse to grant a permit, where–
(i) the applicant is the holder of a private carrier’s permit which has been suspended; or
(ii) any such permit previously held by the applicant has been cancelled; or
(iii) any such permit previously granted in respect of the vehicle or vehicles for which the permit is applied for has been suspended or cancelled.
(2) A Regional Transport Authority may in granting a private carrier’s permit impose conditions to be specified in the permit relating to the description of goods which may be carried, or the area in which the permit shall be valid, or the maximum laden weight and axle weight of any vehicle used.
(3) A Regional Transport Authority may on the application of the holder of a private carrier’s permit granted by it and subject to such conditions as it may attach, extend the operation of the permit to the region or to any area within the region of another Regional Transport Authority, and the requirements of section 65 as to counter-signature of permits shall not be applicable to any such permit:
Provided that nothing in this section shall authorise a Regional Transport Authority to grant a permit effective solely within the region of another Regional Transport Authority.
56. Application for public carrier’s permit.– An application for a permit to use a motor vehicle for the carriage of goods for hire or reward (in this Chapter referred to as a public carrier’s permit) shall be made on the prescribed form and shall contain the prescribed particulars [:]
[Provided that the application shall be accompanied by an affidavit of the applicant to the effect that no Government servant has any financial interest, either directly or indirectly, in the vehicle in respect of which the application is made.]
57. Procedure of Regional Transport Authority in considering application for public carrier’s permit.– (1) Where an application for a public carrier’s permit conforming to the provisions of section 56 has been received by a Regional Transport Authority, it shall, on payment of the prescribed fee, grant a permit in the prescribed form in respect of the vehicle or vehicles specified in the application:
Provided that the Regional Transport Authority may refuse to grant the permit where–
(i) the applicant is the holder of a public carrier’s permit which has been suspended; or
(ii) any such permit previously held by the applicant has been cancelled; or
(iii) any such permit previously granted in respect of the vehicle or vehicles for which the permit is applied for has been suspended or cancelled.
(2) A Regional Transport Authority may on the application of the holder of a public carrier’s permit granted by it, and subject to such conditions as it may attach, extend the operation of the permit to the region or to any area within the region of another Regional Transport Authority and the requirements of section 65 as to counter-signature of permits shall not be applicable to any such permit:
Provided that nothing in this section shall authorise a Regional Transport Authority to grant a permit effective solely within the region of another transport authority.
58. Power to restrict the number of and attach conditions to public carrier’s permits.– The Regional Transport Authority may attach to a public carrier’s permit all or any of the following conditions, namely:-
(i) that the vehicle shall be used only on specified routes or in a specified area;
(ii) that the laden weight and the axle weights of any vehicles used shall not exceed a specified maximum;
(iii) that such records as may be prescribed relating to the plying of the vehicles shall be maintained; and
(iv) that the vehicle used shall comply with such other specified condition or conditions appropriate to the service which the Regional Transport Authority thinks proper to impose in the public interest or with a view to prevent uneconomic competition between road transport services.
[59. Procedure in applying for and granting permits.– (1) An application for a permit of any kind may be made at any time.]
(7) When a Regional Transport Authority refuses an application for a permit of any kind it shall give to the applicant in writing its reasons for the refusal.
[60. Duration and renewal of permits.– (1) A permit other than a special permit issued under section 64 shall be effective [* * *]–
(a) in the case of a stage carriage permit or a contract carriage permit, not being a permit to ply a motor-cab, for such period not being less than one year and not more than three years as the [Provincial or] Regional Transport Authority may after considering the condition of the [public service vehicle] for the route in question in its discretion specify in the permit; and
(b) in the case of any other permit, for such period not being less than three years and not more than five years, as the Regional Transport Authority may, in its discretion specify in the permit.]
(2) A permit may be renewed on an application made in that behalf in the prescribed manner and on payment of the prescribed fee for a period specified in sub-section (1) [:]
[Provided that no person shall claim renewal of a permit of a stage carriage as a matter of right and the Authority which granted the permit may or may not renew it, for reasons to be recorded in writing.]
61. General conditions attaching to all permits.– (1) Save as provided in section 62, a permit shall not be transferable from one person to another except with the permission of the transport authority which granted the permit and shall not without such permission operate to confer on any person to whom a vehicle covered by the permit is transferred any right to use that vehicle in the manner authorised by the permit.
(2) The holder of a permit may, with the permission of the authority by which the permit was granted, replace by another vehicle of the same or substantially similar nature and capacity any vehicle covered by the permit.
(3) The following shall be conditions of every permit:-
(a) that the vehicle or vehicles to which the permit relates are at all times so maintained as to comply with the requirements of Chapter VI and the rules made thereunder;
(b) that the vehicle or vehicles to which the permit relates are not driven at a speed exceeding the speed permissible under this Ordinance;
(c) that any prohibition or restriction imposed and any maximum or minimum fares or freights fixed by notification made under section 45 are observed in connection with any vehicle or vehicles to which the permit relates;
(d) that the vehicle or vehicles to which the permit relates are not driven in contravention of the provision of section 76;
[(dd) that no Government servant shall acquire any interest, either directly or indirectly, in the vehicle covered by a permit except when he acquires such interest by operation of law or under the decree, judgment or order of any court or with the permission, in writing, of the authority by which the permit was granted;]
(e) that the permit holder shall furnish to the Provincial Transport Authority or a Regional Transport Authority or an officer of the Transport Department authorized in this behalf, within such period of time as may be fixed by that authority or the officer, such information relating to the vehicle or vehicles covered by the permit or the permit holder’s business as a carrier as may be required by that authority or officer;
(f) that the provisions of any law for the time being in force in the Province relating to insurance of motor vehicles so far as they apply to the holder of the permit are observed; and
(g) that the permit holder’s business premises shall be according to a design approved by the Provincial Transport Authority and maintained properly.
Explanation– In this clause, business premises include bus stations, shelters, garages and repair shops for the vehicle or vehicles to which the permit relates.
62. Cancellation and suspension of permit.– (1) The transport authority which granted a permit may cancel the permit or may suspend it for such period as it thinks fit–
(a) on the breach of any condition specified in sub-section (3) of section 61 or of any other condition contained in the permit; or
(b) if the holder of the permit uses or causes or allows a vehicle to which the permit relates to be used in any manner not authorized by the permit; or
(c) if the holder of the permit ceases to possess the vehicle or vehicles covered by the permit; or
(d) if the holder of the permit has obtained the permit by fraud or misrepresentation; or
(e) if the holder of a public carrier’s permit fails, without reasonable cause, to ply the vehicle; or
(f) if the holder of the permit uses or causes or allows the vehicle or vehicles to be used for subversive activities against the State; or
(g) if the holder of the permit uses or causes or allows the vehicle or vehicles to be used for the transport of goods the movement of which is banned under any law for the time being in force, or for the commission of a cognizable offence; or
(h) if a forgery has been committed in respect of the permit or it has in any way otherwise been tampered with [; or]
[(i) if the holder of a permit, of a route specified under section 45-A, fails to comply with any of the qualifications or any of the terms and conditions of the permit:]
Provided that no permit shall be cancelled unless an opportunity has been given to the holder of the permit to submit his explanation and of being heard.
(2) Where a transport authority cancels or suspends a permit, it shall record in writing its reasons for the cancellation or suspension and shall give a copy thereof to the holder of the permit.
[62-A. Suspension and cancellation of permits of the specified route and forfeiture of performance guarantee. If an owner, plying his stage carriages on a specified route having more than one permits, fails to comply with or violates any of the qualifications, or any terms and conditions of the permit, the Provincial Transport Authority may impose all or any of the following penalties upon him:
(a) forfeiture of the whole or part of the performance guarantee; or
(b) suspend all or any of the permits; or
(c) cancel all or any of the permits:
Provided that no such penalty shall be imposed upon the owner unless he is afforded an opportunity to show-cause against the specific allegations and the penalty proposed to be imposed upon him.]
63. Transfer of permit on death of holder.– (1) Where the holder of a permit dies, the person succeeding to the possession of the vehicle or vehicles covered by the permit may, for a period of three months, use the permit as if it had been granted to himself:
Provided that such person has, within thirty days of the death of the holder, informed the transport authority which granted the permit of the death of the holder and of his intention to use the permit:
Provided further that no permit shall be so used after the date on which it would have ceased to be effective without renewal in the hands of the deceased holder.
(2) The transport authority may, on application made to it within three months of the death of the holder of a permit, transfer the permit to the person succeeding to the possession of the vehicles covered by the permit.
[Explanation.– For the purposes of this section, the word “death” shall include winding up, dissolution, insolvency or any other mode of extinction of a person or an entity.]
[64. Special permits.– (1) A Regional Transport Authority may grant special permits, to be effective for one return trip only, authorising the use of a motor vehicle for that trip as a public service vehicle [or authorising a transport vehicle being driven empty.]
(2) A Regional Transport Authority may, subject to such conditions as it may impose in this behalf, delegate its powers of issuing a permit under sub-section (1) to its Chairman, any member or any gazetted officer of Government.]
65. [Validation of permits for use outside region in which granted]. Deleted by the
66. Appeals.– (1) Any person–
(a) aggrieved by the refusal of the Provincial or a Regional Transport Authority to grant a permit, or by any condition attached to a permit granted to him; or
(b) aggrieved by the cancellation or suspension of the permit or by any variation of the conditions thereof; or
(c) aggrieved by the refusal to transfer the permit to the person succeeding on the death of the holder of a permit to the possession of the vehicle or vehicles covered by the permit; or
(d) aggrieved by the refusal of the Provincial or a Regional Transport Authority to countersign a permit, or by any condition attached to such countersignature; or
(e) aggrieved by the refusal to renew a permit; or
(f) being a local authority or police authority or an association which, or a person providing transport facilities who, having opposed the grant of a permit, is aggrieved by the grant thereof or by any condition attached thereto; or
(g) being the holder of a licence, who is aggrieved by the refusal of a Regional Transport Authority to grant an authorisation to drive a public service vehicle; [or]
[(h) aggrieved by a penalty of forfeiture, suspension or cancellation imposed under section 62-A,]
may, within thirty days, and in the prescribed manner, appeal to the prescribed authority, who after giving such person and the original authority an opportunity of being heard, pass such order, not inconsistent with the provisions of this Ordinance or the rules framed thereunder, as it may deem fit:
Provided that the appellate authority shall not increase the number of permits granted by the Provincial Transport Authority or a Regional Transport Authority.
(2) No appeal shall lie against any order passed under sub-section (2) of section 45.
(3) Save as expressly provided in this Ordinance, no Court or other authority shall have jurisdiction–
(a) to entertain or adjudicate upon any matter which the Provincial or a Regional Transport Authority or the prescribed authority is empowered by this Ordinance to dispose of or to determine; or
(b) to question the legality of anything done under this Ordinance by or at the instance of the Provincial or a Regional Transport Authority or the prescribed authority.
[67. Compensation for the death of, or injury to a passenger.– (1) In the case of death of, or injury to, a passenger in a stage carriage or a contract carriage other than a contract carriage constructed, adapted or used to carry not more than six passengers including the driver, arising out of the use of such carriage, there shall be paid, if a permit has been granted in respect of that carriage, by the holder of the permit, and, if no permit has been so granted, by the owner of the carriage, as compensation the amount specified in the Thirteenth Schedule,–
(a) in the case of death of a passenger, to the legal representatives of the deceased passenger; and
(b) in the case of an injury to a passenger, to the injured passenger.
(2) The compensation payable under sub-section (1) shall be in addition to any sum which the person entitled to receive compensation may receive or be eligible to receive under a policy of insurance under the provisions of section 95 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1939 (IV of 1939).
(3) Any contract for the conveyance of a passenger in a stage carriage or contract carriage, other than a contract carriage constructed, adapted or used to carry not more than six passengers including the driver, in respect of which a permit has been issued under this Chapter, shall, so far as it purports to restrict the liability of any person, or to absolve any person from his liability, in respect of any claim made against that person in respect of the death of, or injury to, the passenger who is being carried in, entering or alighting from the vehicle or purports to impose any conditions with respect to the enforcement of any such liability, be void.]
[67-A. Claims Tribunal.– (1) Government may, by notification in the official Gazette, constitute a Claims Tribunal for such area or areas as may be specified in the notification, for the purpose of adjudicating upon claims for compensation under section 67.
(2) A Claims Tribunal shall consist of one or more members as Government may deem fit to appoint, and where it consists of two or more members, one of them shall be appointed as the Chairman thereof.]
[67-B. Application for compensation.– (1) An application for compensation under section 67 may be made–
(a) by the person who has sustained the injury; or
(b) where death has resulted, by the legal representatives of the deceased passenger; or
(c) by an agent duly authorised by the person injured or the legal representatives of the deceased passenger, as the case may be.
(2) Every application under sub-section (1) shall be made to the Claims Tribunal having jurisdiction over the area in which the accident resulting in the death or injury, as the case may be, of the passenger, and shall be in such form and shall contain such particulars as may be prescribed.
(3) No application for compensation under this section shall be entertained unless it is [accompanied by such fee as may be prescribed and is] made within ninety days of the accident:
Provided that the Claims Tribunal may entertain an application after the expiry of the said ninety days, if it is satisfied that the applicant was prevented by sufficient cause from making the application in time].
[67-BB. Information regarding claim for compensation.– Where the Claims Tribunal receives information from any source that an accident giving rise to a claim for compensation under section 67 has occurred within its jurisdiction, it may, after such inquiry as it may deem proper, inform the passenger injured in the accident or the legal representatives of the passenger who has died as a result of the accident that it is open to him or them to make an application for compensation under section 67-B and may give him or them, as the case may be, such other information as it may think fit.]
[67-C. Award of compensation.– On receipt of an application for compensation made under section 67-B, the Claims Tribunal shall hold an inquiry into the claim, giving an opportunity to the parties of being heard, and pass an order determining, in accordance with the provisions of section 67, the amount of compensation payable, and specifying the person or persons to whom the compensation shall be paid.]
[67-D. Procedure and powers of Claims Tribunal.– (1) In the holding of an inquiry under section 67-C, the Claims Tribunal shall, subject to any rules that may be made in this behalf by Government, follow such summary procedure as it thinks fit.
(2) The Claims Tribunal shall be deemed to be a Civil Court for all the purposes of section 195 and Chapter XXXV of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898 (Act V of 1898).
(3) The Claims Tribunal shall have all the powers of a
(a) for the purposes of taking evidence on oath, enforcing the attendance of witnesses and compelling the discovery and production of documents and material objects; and
(b) for such other purposes as may be prescribed.]
[67-E. Appeal.– (1) Subject to the provisions of sub-section (2), any person aggrieved by an order of the Claims Tribunal awarding or refusing to award compensation, may [on payment of such fee as may be prescribed] within ninety days from the date of the order, prefer an appeal to the prescribed authority [:]
[Provided that the appellate authority may entertain an appeal after the expiry of the said ninety days, if it is satisfied that the appellant was prevented by sufficient cause from preferring the appeal in time.]
(2) No appeal shall lie under sub-section (1) if the amount in dispute in appeal does not exceed rupees one thousand.]
[67-F. Recovery of amount of compensation.– (1) Where any compensation has been awarded by the Claims Tribunal or the prescribed authority, and the same has not been paid to the person to whom it has been awarded, within seven days of the order awarding the compensation–
(a) if the compensation is payable by a person who has furnished a bank guarantee under section 49, the bank giving the guarantee shall on being required by the Tribunal deposit with the Tribunal the amount of compensation or so much thereof as can be paid out of the amount secured under the guarantee; provided that any amount of compensation which cannot be so recovered shall be recoverable in the manner provided in clause (b);
(b) if the compensation is payable by a person who has not furnished a bank guarantee under section 49, the Claims Tribunal or the prescribed authority awarding the compensation may on the application of the person entitled to receive the compensation, issue a certificate to the Collector, and the Collector shall thereupon proceed to recover the amount specified in the certificate in the same manner as an arrear of land-revenue.
(2) Where any compensation has been paid under the provisions of clause (a) of sub-section (1) out of any amount secured under section 49 in respect of a stage carriage, the permit in respect of such stage carriage shall stand suspended until the permit holder furnishes to the Regional Transport Authority which issued the permit, a fresh bank guarantee of the prescribed sum under the provisions of section 49.]
[(3) An order passed by a Claims Tribunal of any other Province or of the State of Azad Jammu and Kashmir shall be enforceable in the Province in the same manner as if it were an order of the Claims Tribunal of the Province; provided the orders of the Claims Tribunal in the Province are also enforceable in such other Province or the said State.]
[67-G. Bar of jurisdiction.– No Civil Court shall have jurisdiction to entertain any question relating to any claim for compensation which may be adjudicated upon by a Claims Tribunal, and no injunction in respect of any action taken or to be taken by or before a Claims Tribunal in respect of any claim for compensation shall be granted by a Civil Court.]
68. Power to make rules as to stage carriages and contract carriages.– (1) Government may make rules in respect of stage carriages and contract carriages–
(a) to provide for the licensing of persons acting as conductors of such carriages;
(b) to regulate the conduct of persons licensed to act as drivers of, and the conduct and duties of conductors of such vehicles, when acting as such; and
(c) to regulate the conduct of passengers in such vehicles.
(2) Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing provisions, such rules may–
(a) authorise the removal from such vehicle by the driver or conductor, or on the request of the driver or conductor, or any passenger, by any police officer, of any person infringing the rules;
(b) require a passenger who is reasonably suspected by the driver or conductor of contravening the rules to give his name and address to a police officer or to the driver or conductor on demand;
(c) require a passenger to declare, if so requested by the driver or conductor, the journey he intends to take or has taken in the vehicle and to pay the fare for the whole of such journey and to accept any ticket provided therefor;
(d) require, on demand being made for the purpose by the driver or conductor or other persons authorised by the owner of the vehicle production during the journey and surrender at the end of the journey by the holder thereof any ticket issued to him;
(e) require a passenger, if so requested by the driver or conductor, to leave the vehicles on the completion of the journey for which he has paid the fare;
(f) require the surrender by the holder thereof on the expiry of the period of journey for which it is issued, of a ticket issued to him;
(g) require the maintenance of complaint books in stage carriages and prescribe the conditions under which passengers may record any complaints in the same.
69. Power to make rules for the purposes of this Chapter.– (1) Government may make rules for the purposes of carrying into effect the provisions of this Chapter.
(2) Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, rules under this section may be made with respect to all or any of the following matters, namely:-
(i) the period of appointment and the terms of appointment of and the conduct of business by Regional and Provincial Transport Authorities [the delegation of powers by them to their respective Chairmen or any member] and the reports to be furnished by them;
(ii) the conduct and hearing of appeals that may be preferred under this Chapter, the fees to be paid in respect of such appeals and the refund of such fees;
(iii) the forms to be used for the purposes of this Chapter, including the forms of permits;
(iv) the issue of copies of permits in place of permits mutilated, defaced, lost or destroyed;
(v) the documents, plates and marks to be carried by transport vehicles, the manner in which they are to be carried and the languages in which any such documents are to be expressed;
(vi) the badges and uniform to be worn by drivers and conductors of stage carriages and contract carriages;
(vii) the fees to be paid in respect of permits, duplicate permits, plates and badges;
(viii) the exemption of prescribed persons or classes of persons from payment of all or any portion of the fees payable under this Chapter;
(ix) the custody, production and cancellation on expiration, of permits, and the return of permits which have become void or have been cancelled;
(x) the conditions subject to which a permit issued in one region shall be valid in another region;
(xi) the authorities to whom, the time within which and the manner in which appeals may be preferred;
(xii) the construction and fittings of, and the equipment to be carried in by stage and contract carriages, whether generally or in specified areas;
(xiii) the determination of the number of passengers a stage or contract carriage is adapted to carry and the number of passengers which may be carried;
(xiv) the condition subject to which goods may be carried on stage and contract carriages partly or wholly in lieu of passengers;
(xv) the safe custody and disposal of property left in a stage or contract carriage;
(xvi) regulating the painting or marking of transport vehicles and the display of advertising matter thereon, and in particular prohibiting the painting or marking of transport vehicles in such colour or manner as to induce any person to believe that the vehicle is used for the transport of mails;
(xvii) the conveyance in stage or contract carriages of corpses or persons suffering from any infectious contagious disease or goods likely to cause discomfort or injury to passengers, and the inspection and disinfection of such carriages, if used for such purposes;
(xviii) the provision of fitting taxi-meters of approved standard type on motor cabs, and the examining, testing and sealing of taxi-meters;
(xix) prohibiting the picking up or setting down of passengers by stage or contract carriages at specified places or in specified areas or at places other than duly notified stands or halting places, and requiring the driver of a stage carriage to stop and remain stationary for a reasonable time when so required by a passenger desiring to board or alight from the vehicle at a notified halting place;
(xx) the requirements which shall be complied with in the construction or use of any duly notified stand or halting place, including the provision or adequate facilities for the convenience of the users thereof, the fees, if any, which may be charged for the use of such stands or places, the staff to be employed thereat and the duties and conduct of such staff, and generally for maintaining such stands and places in a serviceable and clean condition;
(xxi) the regulation of motor cab ranks;
(xxii) requiring the owners of transport vehicles to notify any change of address or to report the failure of or damage to any vehicle used for the conveyance of passengers for hire or reward;
(xxiii) authorising specified persons to enter at all reasonable times and inspect all premises used by permit holders for the purposes of their business;
(xxiv) requiring a person incharge of a stage carriage to carry any person tendering the legal or customary fare;
(xxv) the conditions under which, the types of containers or vehicles in which and the seasons during which animals or birds may or may not be carried;
(xxvi) the licensing of and the regulation of the conduct of agents or canvassers who engage in the sale of tickets for travel by public service vehicles or otherwise solicit business for such vehicles;
(xxvii) the licensing of and the regulation of the activities of agents in the business of collecting, forwarding and distributing of goods carried by transport vehicles;
(xxviii) the inspection of transport vehicles and their contents and of the permits relating to them;
(xxix) the carriage of persons other than the driver in goods vehicles;
(xxx) the records to be maintained and the return to be furnished by the owners of transport vehicles; [*]
[[(xxxi) the classification of routes and imposition of restrictions regarding age of vehicles for the purpose of issuing stage carriage permits;]
(xxxii) the form in which application should be made for grant of permits;
(xxxiii) the amount of security which should be made for the grant of stage carriage and contract carriage permits; and]
[(xxxiv)] any other matter which is to be or may be prescribed.
[69A. * * * * * * * * * * * *]
CHAPTER V
70. [Punjab Road Transport Board].– (1) Government may establish a [Punjab Road Transport Board] for the purpose of operating road transport services in the Province and the [Board] so established shall be a body corporate by the name of the [Punjab Road Transport Board], having perpetual succession and a common seal and shall by that name sue and be sued.
[(2) The Board shall consist of a Chairman and eleven members and shall be constituted as follows:-
| (i) Minister incharge of Transport Department. | Chairman. |
| (ii) Two members of the Provincial Assembly of the | Member. |
| (iii) One representative or any bargaining agent of Road Transport Board workers union or federation to be appointed by Government. | Member. |
| (iv) A representative of Technical Branch of Punjab Road Transport Board to be appointed by Government. | Member. |
| (v) A representative of Traffic Branch of Punjab Road Transport Board to be appointed by Government. | Member. |
| (vi) A representative of the Pakistan Western Railway to be appointed by Government. | Member. |
| (vii) Managing Director of the Punjab Road Transport Board. | Member. |
| (viii) A representative of the Finance Department, Government of the | Member. |
| (ix) A representative of the Punjab Transport Department to be appointed by Government. | Member. |
| (x) A representative of the Punjab Board of Industrial Management to be appointed by Government. | Member. |
| (xi) A representative of the Bankers’ consortium to be appointed by Government.] | Member. |
[(3) The term of office of each individual member shall be such as may be determined by Government at the time of his appointment.]
(4) On the expiry of the term of his office [* * *] a member shall be eligible for re-appointment for another term or for such shorter term as Government may determine.
(5) [Any] member may at any time resign his office.
Provided that his resignation shall not take effect until it is accepted by Government.
(6) [Each] member [may] receive such salary [or] allowances as may be determined by Government and shall perform such duties as may be assigned to them under this Ordinance or the rules framed thereunder.
(7) Government may, by notification in the official Gazette, remove [* * *] any member–
(i) if he refuses or fails to discharge or becomes in the opinion of Government incapable of discharging his responsibilities under this Ordinance; or
(ii) if he has been declared insolvent; or
(iii) if he has been declared to be disqualified for employment in, or has been dismissed from the service under the [Federal] Government or the Provincial Government or has been convicted of an offence involving moral turpitude; or
(iv) if he has knowingly acquired or continues to hold, without the permission in writing of Government, directly or indirectly or through a partner, any share or interest in any contract or employment with or by or on behalf of the [Board] or in any land or property which to his knowledge is likely to benefit or has benefitted as a result of the operations of the [Board];
[(v) if he absents himself form any meeting of the Board without leave of absence;
(vi) if he is found to be a lunatic or is of unsound mind.]
[(7-A) A person employed for the purpose of an organization established under sub-section (1) shall be deemed to be a public servant within the meaning of section 21 of the Pakistan Penal Code (Act XLV of 1860).]
[(8) A person employed for the purpose of the [Board] shall be deemed to be a public servant within the meaning of section 21 of the Pakistan Penal Code, 1860, but shall not be deemed to be a servant of the Government on the ground that he is employed by the [Board] established by the Government.]
[(9)] Government shall consult the [Board] in all matters relating to the co-ordination of road and rail transport and in the fixation of fares and freights under Chapter IV.
[(10)] Government may make rules not inconsistent with the provisions of this Ordinance, prescribing the powers and functions of the [Board].
[(11) Notwithstanding anything contained in any law or any instrument having the force of law for the time being in force, or any judgment of any court Government shall have the Power, and shall be deemed always to have had the power, to dissolve by notification the Board established under subsection (1) and to lay down in the notification the manner in which all or any of the affairs of the Board, including matters relating to the assets, liabilities, employees and officers of the Board and all matters ensuing as a consequence of the dissolution of the Board shall be dealt with after its dissolution.
(12) Any action taken, notification issued or order made by Government on or after the ninth day of May, 1985, for the dissolution of the Board established under subsection (1) and dealing with the matters ensuing as a consequence of the dissolution shall, notwithstanding anything contained in any law or any instrument having the force of law for the time being in force, or any judgment of any Court, be deemed to have been validly taken, issued or made, as the case may be.]
71. Transport Authorities to have no jurisdiction in respect of motor transport operated by the [Board].– (1) The [Board] may operate motor transport on any route it may think fit, and where it so operates such transport, the Provincial Transport Authority and a Regional Transport Authority shall, notwithstanding anything in this Ordinance, have no jurisdiction in relation to that transport.
(2) The Provincial Transport Authority or the Regional Transport Authority shall not grant or issue stage carriage permits on new route or routes wholly lying within an urban area to be notified in this behalf by Government, unless an offer has first been made to the [Board] to operate its services on such route or routes and the [Board] has declined to operate its services on such route or routes:
Provided that if the [Board] fails to operate its services on such route or routes within three months of the date on which the offer of the Provincial Transport Authority or the Regional Transport Authority, as the case may be, was communicated to it, it shall be presumed that the [Board] has declined to operate its services on such route or routes.
72. Powers of the [Road Transport Board] to acquire property for motor transport operated by it.– (1) [Board] shall have power to acquire any property, movable or immovable, used in, or for, or ancillary to, the operation of any motor transport conducted under this Chapter.
(2) Such acquisition may be made by serving a notice of acquisition on the owner of the property, or if such owner is not readily traceable or the ownership is in dispute, by a notice of acquisition published in the official Gazette and shall take effect from the beginning of the day on which the notice is served or published.
(3) For any property so acquired there shall be paid compensation equivalent to the market value of the property acquired to be calculated in such manner as Government may prescribe.
(4) If any dispute arises as to the amount of compensation payable under sub-section (3), it shall be referred to the arbitration of a person who is or has been a High Court Judge and his award shall be final and binding on the parties and shall not be called in question in any Court of law nor shall anything in the Arbitration Act, 1940, apply to such an arbitration.
CHAPTER VI
CONSTRUCTION, EQUIPMENT AND MAINTENANCE OF MOTOR VEHICLES
73. General provisions regarding construction and maintenance.– Every motor vehicle shall be so constructed and so maintained as to be at all times under the effective control of the person driving the vehicle.
74. Power to make rules.– (1) Government may make rules regulating the construction, equipment and maintenance of motor vehicles and trailers.
(2) Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, Government may make rules governing any of the following matters either generally in respect of motor vehicles or trailers or motor vehicles or trailers of a particular class or in particular circumstances, namely:-
(a) the width, height, length and overhang of vehicles and of the loads to be carried therein;
(b) seating arrangements in public service vehicles and the protection of passengers against the weather;
(c) the size, nature and condition of tyres;
(d) brakes and steering gear;
(e) the use of safety glass;
(f) signalling appliances, lamps and reflectors;
(g) speed governors;
(h) the emission of smoke, visible vapour, sparks, ashes, grit or oil;
(i) the reduction of noise emitted by or caused by vehicles;
(j) prohibiting or restricting the use of audible signals at certain times or in certain places;
(k) prohibiting the carrying of appliance likely to cause annoyance or danger;
(l) the periodical testing and inspection of vehicles by prescribed authorities;
(m) the particulars, other than registration marks, to be exhibited by vehicles and the manner in which they shall be exhibited;
(n) the use of trailers or semi-trailers with motor vehicles; and
(o) prohibiting or requiring the painting in particular colours of motor vehicles of particular description or for particular purposes or in particular areas.
