Flouting of Norms by Vehicle Showroom: Transport Authorities Concealing Information
Dr.Badal Tah,Odishabarta
Rayagada, August 31: Rayagada is a poor, tribal-dominated district where most residents come from low-income backgrounds. Nevertheless, many struggle to purchase four wheelers for their essential needs and subsequently face severe harassment. Over the past few years, numerous four wheelers showrooms have opened across the district, yet customers find it difficult to identify whether these setups are authorized sales showrooms or service centers. Both sales and servicing operations are being run from the same premises. Consequently, even for minor technical issues, customers are forced to travel at high personal expense to Jeypore, Berhampur, Visakhapatnam, or Bhubaneswar.
For instance, a commercial facility bearing the name “Tata Motors, Lankeswari” operates alongside National Highway 326 at Katapeta, under the Chandili police limits in Rayagada. Tata cars are displayed and sold here, while servicing is provided once a month. At other times, customers with minor vehicle issues are directed to travel to Jeypore, 125 kms away from Rayagada town, at their own additional expenses. Even when customers take their vehicles to Jeypore or send them via Katapeta staff, repairs are rarely completed promptly. Allegations suggest that mechanics delay pinpointing actual faults and waste days conducting trial-and-error experiments.
Recently, a customer left a small sum of money inside his vehicle with the knowledge of Katapeta staff before sending it to Jeypore for servicing; upon return, the cash was missing, and the staff member responsible for handover could offer no explanation, raising serious concerns regarding theft. Furthermore, despite purchasing or servicing vehicles in Rayagada, customers are issued invoices showing a Jeypore address rather than a local Rayagada address, fueling suspicions over whether the outlet operates legally. Despite operating as a Tata Motors Lankeswari sales or service outlet, it appears to violate several mandatory regulatory requirements, including: minimum commercial premises and floor area limits, valid lease deeds or ownership documentation, designated vehicle storage, warehouse, and reception zones, dedicated workshop and customer reception/waiting areas, dedicated commercial three-phase power connections, adequate and registered staffing strength, State Pollution Control Board clearance, Fire Department safety certificates, Local Panchayat operational trade licenses, etc. All operations—displaying new cars for sale, customer waiting areas, administrative desks, and periodic servicing—are conducted within a single open structure.
By regulation, vehicle dealerships and service outlets fall under the Transport Department and require joint physical site inspections and clearances from Transport, Fire, Electrical, and other concerned authorities before commencing operations. Suspecting widespread non-compliance, a customer filed a Right to Information (RTI) application with the Regional Transport Office (RTO). However, the RTO withheld the information, allegedly consulting Lankeswari Motors officials and dismissing the query by labeling the details as “personal information.” This response has intensified suspicions of illegal operations, leading locals to demand a formal administrative inquiry and strict enforcement.
Local intellectual and senior journalist Deepak Prusty noted that numerous vehicle showrooms have emerged across Rayagada in recent years, alleging that crores of rupees change hands through collusion between transport officials and private operators. Because Rayagada borders Andhra Pradesh, hundreds of vehicles are illegally registered through the Rayagada RTO, placing the district second in the state for such illicit registrations.
A few months ago, a passenger bus registered in Rayagada in complete violation of government norms caught fire while operating in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, leading to the tragic death of a young engineer from Muniguda block. Similarly, local intellectual and labor leader Jogeshwar Das cautioned that vehicle sales and service outlets operating in flagrant violation of mandatory statutory rules pose severe safety hazards. Dr. Badal kumar Tah, President of the Rayagada Nagarika Mancha, a prominent civics body, warned that if the Government of Odisha and the district administration continue to overlook these infractions, Rayagada will remain vulnerable to similar fatal mishaps.
