Aimed at clearing the huge backlog of applications for driving licence, Regional Transport Offices have begun permitting double the number of applicants to appear for driving test held each day, based on a Government Order issued on Wednesday.
Personnel from the Enforcement Wing of the Motor Vehicles Department (MVD) have been temporarily deputed to RTOs and Sub-RTOs to clear pendency, said a senior official of the Transport Department. “The disruption of driving tests due to the pandemic had affected innumerable applicants, mainly those who were waiting to go abroad and having a driving licence was mandatory. This also affected the functioning of driving schools. The permission to double the number of applicants appearing for the test was taken in such a situation,” he added.
“The new measure has in turn resulted in 240 applicants being able to attend test held by the Ernakulam RTO each day, as compared to 120 as was the norm. We thus hope to clear the backlog caused by the pandemic in another 15 days,” said P.M. Shabeer, Ernakulam RTO.
Sub-RTOs too have begun temporarily enrolling personnel of the Enforcement Wing for the purpose.
“The deployment of more personnel for licence test will help clear the backlog of over 4,000 applications that were pending before us,” said Salim Vijayakumar, Joint RTO, Aluva Sub Regional Transport Office. “We hope to clear the pending applications by December, since our office has been permitted to entertain 120 applicants each day in two batches, vis-a-vis 60 that was the norm earlier,” he added.
Many RTOs will conduct tests on Wednesday and Saturday as well to speed up the process, it is learnt.
The applicants include those whose tenure of the existing licence has expired and have to attend the test to get an extended term. The online exam mode for obtaining learner’s licence has, in the meantime, resulted in the pass percentage in driving tests falling. This was mainly because many more people than during the pre-pandemic days applied for the test, while the number of vehicles available with driving schools was much the same, affecting the quality of driving skills, sources said.
