Legislation for obligatory motorbike trackers in the pipeline

The Sindh government has decided to introduce a new law in the provincial assembly to amend the Motor Vehicles Ordinance 1965 in order to make it binding on motorcyclists to install tracking devices on their two-wheelers to prevent their theft and subsequent misuse by criminals.

The transport & mass transit department on Wednesday moved a summary to this effect to the chief minister for approval. The summary proposed installation of trackers on new as well as old motorbikes in use across the province.

A statement issued in this connection quoted Transport Minister Awais Qadir Shah as saying that once the amendment is passed, the new law will become applicable in the entire province. The transport minister said that under the new piece of legislation, companies manufacturing motorbikes and showrooms selling them will be bound to install tracking devices on the new two-wheelers being sold anywhere in the province.

He said that the law will take its due course against motorcycles being used in the province without a tracker installed on them. Once the law comes into force in the province, the excise department will only register those new motorbikes that are fitted with trackers, he added.

Shah said the tracker companies operating across Karachi will also be taken on board regarding the implementation of the new policy. Once trackers are installed, two-wheelers will be protected against theft and their subsequent use in the commission of crimes, including target killings, he added.

The provincial transport minister said that people will become the ultimate beneficiaries of the government’s decision pushing for the installation of tracking devices on motorbikes. The summary sent to Sindh’s chief executive proposes the following amendment to the Motor Vehicles Ordinance 1965 in the form of Section 89-AA.

“No person shall ride a motorcycle without a functional tracker of the specification and installed in a manner as may be prescribed, provided that the government may specify the date of applicability of this section to any kind of category or class of motorcycles in any territory.”