Chandigarh, February 24, 2025: Kamal Soi, Member of the National Road Safety Council, Government of India, Ministry of Road Transport & Highways, and Chairman of Raahat – The Safe Community Foundation, has raised serious concerns over the Punjab government’s move to take control of driving license (DL) and registration certificate (RC) issuance.
Addressing a press conference at the Chandigarh Press Club today, Soi highlighted that 268 employees have already lost their jobs due to this transition. He referred to the Request for Proposal (RFP) issued on February 10, 2025, which mandates that the Transport Department will oversee the personalization of data, issuance, and distribution of final personalized smart cards post-supply.
Concerns Over Corruption and Inefficiency
Soi criticized the move, arguing that government control over a project previously managed by a system integrator will lead to increased corruption, inefficiency, and inconvenience for the public. He emphasized that system integrators bring in skilled professionals, including IT specialists and project managers, whose expertise is now at risk of being disregarded.
He said, over 5 lakh people in Punjab are waiting for DLs and RCs and are left in the lurch and are being subjected to inconvenience, which will only lead to corruption. Moreover Why driving tests are not being conducted by the government in Punjab”, he questioned.
“In a startling revelation, I had earlier addressed a press conference on February 7 about the public inconvenience due to delays in DL and RC issuance. It appears that in a hasty response, the Transport Department issued the RFP on February 10, 2025, for the selection of an agency to supply smart cards. However, the department has decided to manage critical functions of data personalization and distribution itself, which is a cause for major concern,” Soi stated.
Potential Failure of Implementation
According to Soi, this move could lead to complete failure and chaos at the implementation stage, as the Transport Department lacks the necessary expertise, infrastructure, and workforce. He pointed out that the department does not have access to NIC’s (National Informatics Centre) Vahan and Sarathi ecosystem, which is essential for data handling. Furthermore, critical steps such as data deployment in a print-ready format, quality control in DL/RC printing, and proper dispatch management require specialized expertise.
Need for Transparency and Efficiency
Soi warned that government involvement in issuing DLs and RCs could lead to conflicts of interest and favoritism, thereby reducing transparency and efficiency. He noted that private sector firms operate under competitive market forces and performance-based incentives, ensuring better accountability than government-managed operations.
He urged the Transport Department to reconsider its decision and amend the RFP to allow the selected agency to manage data personalization and issuance of smart cards. He also suggested that until a new vendor is appointed, the DL & RC project in Punjab should be managed by NICSI (National Informatics Centre Services Inc.), which has a credible track record in the transportation sector for over 25 years.
“The public should not suffer due to administrative inefficiencies. It is crucial that the government ensures a seamless, transparent, and accountable process for issuing DLs and RCs while also safeguarding employment for skilled professionals in the private sector,” Soi concluded.
