Imphal, April 19: Manipur Police Department has paid over Rs 20 lakhs to the State Transport Department, thus clearing off all its outstanding pending vehicle taxes during the financial year 2004-05, according to a reliable source.

The source, however, contended that the manner in which the Police Department issued TRC and fined vehicles which have not paid off taxes is in violation of the Motor Vehicles Act.

However, the total amount of pending taxes to paid by other Governmental Departments to the Transport Department still cross over Rs 33.66 lakhs at the close of the financial years, said a reliable source adding that the figure might be more if the taxes incurred during the new financial year are included.

The tax defaulted Departments and their amount are PHED (Rs 8,71,128), IFCD (Rs 7,09,116), PWD (Rs 7,02,452), Medical Department (Rs 5,30,095), Power (Rs 1,20,280), Minor Irrigation (Rs 1,23,840), Forest Department (Rs 69,021), Tribal Welfare Department (Rs 41,724), GAD (Rs 21,700) and FCS (Rs 41,140).Among the tax defaulted Departments are also some which do not used the vehicles any more but failed to report to the Transport Department in time.

These Departments are not in favour of paying off the incurred taxes for such vehicles, the source added.

The source informed that it was mandatory for all concerned parties to submit report to the Transport Department whenever there any cases of vehicles having torched by anti-social elements and damaged during accident.

Otherwise, the Department or owner concerned is liable to pay taxes incurred on the vehicles.

But interesting some of the Department even sold off their condemned vehicles without the permission of the Transport Department.

There are cases in which the owners of vehicles bought through auction returned without the formality of transferring the registration of the vehicles in their own names on learning that they have to pay off the pending vehicle taxes, the source said, while pointing out any case in which the parts of the vehicles were removed and fitted in some other vehicles and sold it off ad scraps.

In such a situation, it is difficult to say the exact number of vehicles in Manipur, the observed pointed out.

The total tax amount to be collected by the Transport Department in a year depends on the number vehicles registered in the Department.

If all vehicles running on the roads are taken into account, the target of revenue collection set up the Department would be achieved.

It may be noted here the revenue collection of the State Transport Department during 2004-05 was only Rs 4,45,01,879 as against the set target of Rs 5 crores.

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