I have had my friends ask me so many times, what a NOC (No Objection Certificate) is and how they have to deal with it when they transfer their bikes across the states in India. Being a software professional, like any other, I keep jumping companies across the states on lookout for greener career pastures. I have to uproot with the whole lot of items that I had accumulated through the years while I move. There is an item that is significant, the Bike. Every body knows that taking the bike across the state is a headache, as far as the registration is concerned.There is very little information available on the NOC, around. None on the Net, none from the friends/peers and none from all the garbage thrown at you by an agent you approached.
This prompted me to write at least the tit bits that I acquired during my stay here in Hyderabad with a bike having TN registration. I shifted to Hyderabad a year ago in March 2007. In the beginning, for a couple of months, I preferred autos for commuting. As days went by, when my pocket pinched, I started missing my bike. One fine day, I decided courageously to bring the bike from Ooty against all odds. As my intention was to stay in Hyderabad for couple of years, I went around collecting information on how I can go about having my bike in Hyderabad without re-registering. However, I came up biting the dust.
One fine evening, my dear friend lokesh told me that he had a cue on NOC. He said he had stumbled upon a relevant information on “Automobile Association of India” website. It seems that the Supreme Court had passed a law applicable to Mumbai alone, that vehicles from other states can ply in Mumbai paying a nominal yearly fee to the RTO. In addition, the website indicated that this rule might be applicable in the other states too. The site advised that we carry a hard copy of the verdict and show it to the cops when asked. Keeping this in mind, my friend and I visited the RTO, Hyderabad, to gain some insight into it. The moment we mentioned Automobile Association of India, the officer flared up. He was not ready to give ears to what we were asking him. He bull shitted the information and asked us to get out. He provided us only one way out, re-registration. That's when we realized the cause for the officer's vague behaviour. The RTO and Automobile Association of India are rivals. Let it lie!
The re-registration involves these steps:
You obtain a NOC from the state in which your vehicle is registered, to the state to which you are taking the vehicle. Obviously, this means you will cancel the existing registration and are eligible to re-register in the other state. The NOC validity is one year until which you can go around with the old registration. However, taking a NOC would mean that you lose the registration fee that went into registering the vehicle in the original state and the life tax you paid along with it. The RTO promises to refund the remaining life tax, but as bright as the Sun, you know, it will never happen.
Amount Lost + Spent (Bike): (Registration Charge) + (Tax) + NOC Charges + Agent Charges.
Next, you re-register here in the new state paying the life tax, which is calculated based on the depreciation on your bike. If your bike is more than 5 years old, the amount will be nominal. That's one good thing. However, you need to pay the registration fees once again.
Amount Spent (Bike): (Registration Charge) + Tax + Agent Charges.
If you are good in mathematics and get your numbers right, you will surely have an heart attack. You would blurt, “So much for a bike!”. Summing up, you end up losing nearly Rs 10,000. It wouldn't be suitable to a person taking home a salary package with all the cuts, like me :-(.
Coming back to the most dreaded NOC, there are two kinds:
Now, considering a situation where the cop stops you for having a different registration, you would immediately tell the cop that you are in the state for just 15 days or just passing by. Obviously, the cop’s next game plan would be to ask for the NOC. Remember, in this case, the NOC referred to is the “Police NOC.” Cop does not have authority to verify RTO NOC. Even if he detains you on RTO NOC, he needs to present your bike to the RTO office unconditionally
If the Police NOC, in consideration, is valid, that is, if the date of issuance is within 3 months, then it's fine. The cop might let you go. Why might?!! Ha-ha, cops intention is to fleas you unconditionally, you are his "lucky pot" that day, and he has no intention to let you go without you leaving him some hot cash. :-)
Certainly, you can obtain a Police NOC at a regular interval and have it couriered down to you, by someone close to you, from the state to which the bike actually belongs. The Police issuing the NOC would charge a nominal fee along with the one that goes under the table. Your family or friend can work this out for you. Having a NOC in this manner is better than running around with the cops at your heels.
So much for that, I am ain’t sure why the state governments are not ready to implement the idea proposed by the Supreme Court. It would be helpful for people who keep changing their jobs frequently. Imagine, what your plight would be if you have to re-register the vehicle every time you shift states. Certainly, as of now the government is our foe and we have to find a way out, either good or bad.
To top it all, I suggest, only suggest, that you do not re-register the vehicle, but hand over Rs.100 to any cop you encounter on one of your unlucky day.
I insist, it is always good to re-register. However, there may be few Spartans like I, not agreeing. For the Spartans, I suggest, you do not re-register, but be ready to give up minuscule bucks. I am in Hyderabad for a year now and have only one incidence where I was caught and had to sell out 100 bucks.
Few tips for the biking Spartans, however, not applicable to “Law Abiding Good People”:
This prompted me to write at least the tit bits that I acquired during my stay here in Hyderabad with a bike having TN registration. I shifted to Hyderabad a year ago in March 2007. In the beginning, for a couple of months, I preferred autos for commuting. As days went by, when my pocket pinched, I started missing my bike. One fine day, I decided courageously to bring the bike from Ooty against all odds. As my intention was to stay in Hyderabad for couple of years, I went around collecting information on how I can go about having my bike in Hyderabad without re-registering. However, I came up biting the dust.
One fine evening, my dear friend lokesh told me that he had a cue on NOC. He said he had stumbled upon a relevant information on “Automobile Association of India” website. It seems that the Supreme Court had passed a law applicable to Mumbai alone, that vehicles from other states can ply in Mumbai paying a nominal yearly fee to the RTO. In addition, the website indicated that this rule might be applicable in the other states too. The site advised that we carry a hard copy of the verdict and show it to the cops when asked. Keeping this in mind, my friend and I visited the RTO, Hyderabad, to gain some insight into it. The moment we mentioned Automobile Association of India, the officer flared up. He was not ready to give ears to what we were asking him. He bull shitted the information and asked us to get out. He provided us only one way out, re-registration. That's when we realized the cause for the officer's vague behaviour. The RTO and Automobile Association of India are rivals. Let it lie!
The re-registration involves these steps:
You obtain a NOC from the state in which your vehicle is registered, to the state to which you are taking the vehicle. Obviously, this means you will cancel the existing registration and are eligible to re-register in the other state. The NOC validity is one year until which you can go around with the old registration. However, taking a NOC would mean that you lose the registration fee that went into registering the vehicle in the original state and the life tax you paid along with it. The RTO promises to refund the remaining life tax, but as bright as the Sun, you know, it will never happen.
Amount Lost + Spent (Bike): (Registration Charge) + (Tax) + NOC Charges + Agent Charges.
Next, you re-register here in the new state paying the life tax, which is calculated based on the depreciation on your bike. If your bike is more than 5 years old, the amount will be nominal. That's one good thing. However, you need to pay the registration fees once again.
Amount Spent (Bike): (Registration Charge) + Tax + Agent Charges.
If you are good in mathematics and get your numbers right, you will surely have an heart attack. You would blurt, “So much for a bike!”. Summing up, you end up losing nearly Rs 10,000. It wouldn't be suitable to a person taking home a salary package with all the cuts, like me :-(.
Coming back to the most dreaded NOC, there are two kinds:
- RTO NOC- for giving up the current registration
- Police NOC-, which the local police station in the town/city to which your bike belongs, issues. This one will attest that the vehicle has no criminal case on and is eligible to travel across India provided the duration of stay in the other states is minimal, not more than 3 months or so.
Now, considering a situation where the cop stops you for having a different registration, you would immediately tell the cop that you are in the state for just 15 days or just passing by. Obviously, the cop’s next game plan would be to ask for the NOC. Remember, in this case, the NOC referred to is the “Police NOC.” Cop does not have authority to verify RTO NOC. Even if he detains you on RTO NOC, he needs to present your bike to the RTO office unconditionally
If the Police NOC, in consideration, is valid, that is, if the date of issuance is within 3 months, then it's fine. The cop might let you go. Why might?!! Ha-ha, cops intention is to fleas you unconditionally, you are his "lucky pot" that day, and he has no intention to let you go without you leaving him some hot cash. :-)
Certainly, you can obtain a Police NOC at a regular interval and have it couriered down to you, by someone close to you, from the state to which the bike actually belongs. The Police issuing the NOC would charge a nominal fee along with the one that goes under the table. Your family or friend can work this out for you. Having a NOC in this manner is better than running around with the cops at your heels.
So much for that, I am ain’t sure why the state governments are not ready to implement the idea proposed by the Supreme Court. It would be helpful for people who keep changing their jobs frequently. Imagine, what your plight would be if you have to re-register the vehicle every time you shift states. Certainly, as of now the government is our foe and we have to find a way out, either good or bad.
To top it all, I suggest, only suggest, that you do not re-register the vehicle, but hand over Rs.100 to any cop you encounter on one of your unlucky day.
I insist, it is always good to re-register. However, there may be few Spartans like I, not agreeing. For the Spartans, I suggest, you do not re-register, but be ready to give up minuscule bucks. I am in Hyderabad for a year now and have only one incidence where I was caught and had to sell out 100 bucks.
Few tips for the biking Spartans, however, not applicable to “Law Abiding Good People”:
- While riding, be conscious for the cops on the road. Avoid going frequently through the areas infested with cops.
- Get accustomed with narrow residential roads/ gullies and use them to cut across the main road, thus avoiding the circles or signals that pose greater chances of you being caught. You are sure to lose little bit more fuel and minutes, nevertheless this way, you are tension free and at the month's end, you will be surprised to find that you haven't spend that much on the fuel.
- Keep the extra cash hidden in the purse while keeping visibly little, not more than few hundred. More cash the cop sees in your purse, more the demand will be.
- Try bargaining innocently with the Cop. Tell him you need to pick up medicine on the way. Might be he will take only a tiny bite off your purse.
- Never loose your concentration on the road trying to avoid cops and get hurt. It’s better to pay than get killed.
- Avoid taking the vehicle out in the weekends. Traffic will be less and the cop will leisurely trap you.
Keep in mind, MONEY IS NOT IMPORTANT OVER YOUR LIFE. Take care!
Once again, it is always safe to re-register or at least have a Police NOC. The information I have provided here represents my individual feelings. I would suggest you do some more research on your part to be on the safer side.
Let’s hope, a day will dawn when the government will come up with a novel idea to ease IT engineers’ plight.
