Making Environment Greener and Roads Safer S P Shah, President Dear friends, I am happy to inform that at the SAFE Annual Convention, 2010 held in Chandigarh on 5th May'10, Dr Pawan Goenka, President, SIAM announced the launching of SIAM- FADA pilot project on Voluntary Inspection & Certification in 16 dealerships for passenger vehicles that are more than 3-year old. He also released the sample of the 'SAFE SERVICE CERTIFICATE' and 'SAFE Service' stickers, which are proposed to be issued to car owners who undergo Safe Certification at any of the SAFE SERVICE Centres to be set up by automobile dealers. SAFE Certification checks will include inspection of brake, suspension, emission levels, tyre condition & headlight alignment. All these checks, except headlight alignment & tyre condition, will be carried out on computerised, automated machines and the reports will be generated by computer to ensure that subjective judgement is avoided as far as possible. I am hopeful, this initiative will pave the way for introduction of a full-fledged, mandatory Inspection & Certification Programme in India. As rightly said by Dr Goenka, the programme is a win-win for all stakeholders, including automobile manufacturers & dealers, insurance companies and vehicle owners. Vehicle owners undergoing SAFE CERTIFICATION will have to pay testing fee of Rs. 500 for these computerised checks. However, I am happy to inform that two insurance companies, Bajaj Allianz and ICICI Lombard have agreed to give a rebate of Rs. 500 in motor insurance renewal premium to the car owners who are issued with a 'SAFE CERTIFICATE'. In other words, motorists will not have to incur any additional cost as the incentive in insurance premium will offset the cost of SAFE Certification. I would like to convey my special thanks to Mr Kamesh Goyal, Country Manager, Bajaj Allianz and Mr Ajay Shah, VP Customer Service & Motor Insurance, ICICI Lombard for their support to this initiative. FADA is also in dialogue with IRDA and other insurance companies to make the rebate in insurance premium - Rs. 500 in case of passenger vehicles and Rs. 200 for two- wheelers carrying a ‘SAFE SERVICE CERTIFICATE’ - universal across all insurance companies. I am sure other insurance companies will also come forward to support this programme. Further, FADA is also working to link motor insurance renewal with the 'SAFE SERVICE CERTIFICATE'. I strongly believe that this initiative will lead to clean environment, safety for families and preventive maintenance culture among vehicle users. All this at no extra cost! As you all know, due to the non-availability of BS-III specific fuel in many parts of the country, the Government has issued a draft notification for the deferment of BS-III emission norms for 2-wheelers across the country and 4-wheelers in other than 13 cities where BS-IV emission norms have already been implemented. The delay in issue of final notification has caused a lot of confusion with most of the RTOs suspending registration of BS-II compliant vehicles. FADA is concerned at this state of suspended animation and has been feverently following up with Ministry of Road Transport and Highways for an early issuance of the final notification in order to relieve automobile dealers of uncertainty and anxiety. By the time this Journal reaches you, the final notification, hopefully, must have been issued. Talking about other initiatives that FADA has already started working upon includes a Study on Dealership Satisfaction, which will be undertaken by JD Power Asia Pacific shortly. The study aims to capture the dealers' voice and the ground realities at the auto retail level. The study is likely to be concluded in July 2010. I appeal to my fellow dealers to participate overwhelmingly in this study to make it meaningful. FADA is also working with Government, SIAM and other institutions to create and develop a talent pool of skill sets required for effective dealership management. I seek your support and inputs for various FADA's initiatives. With best wishes, Yours sincerely, S P Shah