Mumbai, May 19 (PTI) A special drive will be undertaken against manufacturers and dealers of e-bikes whose battery capacity is augmented or per hour speed limit is increased illegally, the Maharashtra Transport Commissioner's office said on Thursday.

Also Read | Gurugram Shocker: Police Rescues 4-Year-Old Child Within Four Hours of Being Kidnapped, Woman Held.

As per a statement issued by the transport commissioner's office, the decision to undertake the drive was taken against the backdrop of reports of mishaps involving such vehicles.

Also Read | Supreme Court Lifts Stay on Delhi High Court Order on Guidelines Relating to Feeding of Stray Dogs.

The transport commissioner's office has urged manufacturers, dealers and citizens to not make illegal alterations in their vehicles, and if any such change has been made in a vehicle, it should be restored immediately, the statement said.

According to the statement, e-bikes with the battery capacity of less than 250 watts and per hour speed limit below 25 km are exempted from registration.

Manufacturers of such bikes, however, are mandated to procure "type approval test report" from an authorised testing agency before selling the vehicles, it said.

The Transport Commissioner's office exempts such vehicles from registration based on the certificate (report) and manufacturer concerned and regional and deputy regional transport officials are informed accordingly, the statement said.

However, it has been observed that some vehicle manufacturers are selling vehicles sans the certificate from authorised agencies. Moreover, illegal changes are made in e-bikes, whose production has been allowed, to augment battery capacity beyond 250 watts or speed limit is increased to over 25 km per hour, it added.

“Since registration of such vehicles is not required, one does not need to procure a license to drive them. Hence, there is a possibility of threat to road safety due to the sale of vehicles after illegal changes have been made in them. Besides, it has been noticed that incidents of e-bikes catching fire are taking place often,” the statement said.

People should ensure that the manufacturers and dealers have procured "type approval test report" and possess a copy of the permission from the Transport Commissioner's office before buying a vehicle, it said.

“A special drive will be undertaken against manufacturers and dealers of such vehicles in all the districts of the state in view of the safety of citizens,” the statement said.

The regional and deputy regional transport officials have been asked to file complaints in police stations against those found at fault under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 and IPC, it said.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)