Telangana joins ‘Vahan’ platform, scraps 2% tax on second vehicle

Telangana Transport Minister Ponnam Prabhakar inaugurated the ‘Vahan’ portal on Monday, March 23, 2026, marking its integration into the State’s national vehicle database system, which aims to streamline transport services and increase transparency. The minister also announced that the government has abolished the additional 2% lifetime tax previously applied to second and subsequent personal vehicles, effective from Monday.

Addressing the gathering at the launch event held at Varun Motors in Hyderabad, the Minister termed the integration with the ‘Vahan’ platform as a significant reform undertaken by the Telangana government. “This will consolidate all vehicle-related data into a single national database, enabling services such as vehicle registration, transfer of ownership and tax payments to be delivered more quickly and transparently,” he said.

Highlighting broader reforms in the Transport Ministry, Mr. Prabhakar said Telangana had already integrated with the ‘Sarathi’ platform last year and the addition of ‘Vahan’ completes the state’s alignment with national digital transport systems. He noted that around 1,500 new vehicles are added to the roads in the state every day, making it imperative to adopt modern technology for efficient data management and governance.

Vehicle registrations in showrooms

He also added that vehicle registration processes have been made more transparent, with registrations now taking place directly at automobile showrooms instead of transport offices.

He also outlined policy measures, including introduction of Electric Vehicle Policy and Vehicle Scrapping Policy, stating that Telangana aims to emerge as a leading hub for electric mobility.

Special Chief Secretary Vikas Raj said that the state has been steadily adopting digital initiatives at the national level in the transport sector. He said the government’s focus is to ensure flawless delivery of online services without technical glitches.