Scrap, Recycle, Revive: Reimagining India's Automotive Future
- IJLLR Journal
- 1 hour ago
- 1 min read
Anika Tripathi, Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies
ABSTRACT
India's Vehicle Scrappage Policy (2021), officially known as the Voluntary Vehicle-Fleet Modernisation Program (V-VMP), represents a strategic initiative to phase out overage, unfit, and high-emission vehicles in order to combat air pollution, enhance road safety, stimulate the automotive sector, and advance a circular economy. With an estimated large number of vehicles exceeding 15–20 years of age, contributing significantly to vehicular emissions, often 10–12 times higher than modern BS-VI compliant models The policy mandates automated fitness testing at Automated Testing Stations (ATS) and requires the deregistration and responsible dismantling of failed vehicles at Registered Vehicle Scrapping Facilities (RVSFs).
This paper provides a comprehensive examination of the policy's framework, including vehicle categorisation (private, commercial, government, and vintage), the scrapping process via the vscrap portal, issuance of Certificates of Deposit (CoD), and associated incentives such as road tax concessions and discounts on new vehicle purchases. It conducts a comparative analysis with established global models from Germany (EU ELV Directive and cash-for- clunkers), Japan (Automobile Recycling Law), the United Kingdom, and Canada, highlighting India's evolving approach toward formalised recycling and manufacturer responsibility.
The analysis explores the policy's dual environmental and economic impacts, including projected reductions in vehicular emissions (potentially 15–20%), support for India's net-zero by 2070 ambitions, job creation (up to 50,000 direct jobs), increased demand for new vehicles, and supply of recycled raw materials. However, implementation faces significant challenges, including limited infrastructure (with only modest progress in scrappage numbers, approximately 350,000 vehicles scrapped by mid-2025 against ambitious annual targets of over 500,000 by 2026), insufficient incentives, uneven state-level adoption, inadequate hazardous waste management, and low public awareness.
