RTO will start working on high security registration plates for vehicles soon

Pune: As the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has made it mandatory for all new vehicles to be sold with pre-fitted high-security registration plates from April 1, 2019, the Regional Transport Office (RTO) of Pune will soon start working on it.

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has notified amendments in Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989 to this effect. The notification mandates that the high-security registration plates including the third registration mark will be supplied by the vehicle manufacturers along with the vehicles manufactured on or after April 1, 2019, to their dealers and the dealers will place a mark of registration on such plates and affix them on the vehicle. The vehicle dealers can also provide the high-security registration plates for old vehicles.

This step is likely to improve the coverage of high-security registration plates on vehicles while ensuring its quality by the vehicle manufacturers. The high-security registration plates help in keeping a track of the vehicle and makes it easier to trace a lost or stolen vehicle.
The notification to amend the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989 to this effect was issued after due consideration of objections and suggestions received from the public in this regard. Ministry of Road Transport and Highways in April this year had invited objections and suggestions from those likely to be affected by the amendment.

As per the record of RTO, around 30 lakh vehicles have been registered with the Transport Department. On an average, 500 vehicles register every day with the RTO. 

“We will work as per the notification. But now, we can’t comment on this. We have to work and implement,” said a senior officer of RTO Pune. 

Earlier this year in April, Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari had talked about plans to make pre-fitted high-security registration plates mandatory for all vehicles, the price for which will be added to the price of the vehicle. The idea is to ensure nationwide uniformity in licence plate prices and bring down the cost for the customer, who has to spend anywhere between Rs 800 to Rs 40,000 for them.