BENGALURU: On the 1st of this month, the Transport Department issued a notification allowing the traffic violators to show a soft copy of their driving license, vehicle registration and emission certificate stored in DigiLocker to police. Motorists now need not carry the original documents all the time. However, the awareness about this facility still remains low, even among the traffic policemen.
Several traffic police officials that The New Indian Express spoke to on Saturday said that they were yet to receive any instructions on accepting DigiLocker documents from motorists."We have not received specific instructions about the app, but we do allow people with minor offences to show us soft copies of their documents. Most often, people show the vehicle insurance as a soft copy as they receive it by email," said an official near the ASC Junction.
Another police constable at Cubbon Road also said that soft copies, sometimes even photos taken of the documents were accepted. But only for minor offences. "As long as the license number is visible and a challan can be raised, we accept such soft copies. Most people forget these documents at home," he said. However, he also said that he had not heard of DigiLocker or how it works.
While the service will provide a easy method of carrying documents for motorists in the IT city, there is one rider. For offences which mandate the seizing of driving license and vehicle registration, the police will have the right to refuse the DigiLocker alternative. This has been made clear in the notification by the Transport Department. Currently, the BTP suspends licenses for a variety of serious offences from footpath riding to using mobile phone while driving as well as drunk driving.
When contacted, additional commissioner of police R Hithendra said that as directions regarding the decision had been issued by the Transport Department, no further directions would be necessary or issued to traffic police personnel. On being asked if soft copies would be accepted, he said, "The requirement is that their DL number should be registered in our records. We have anyway been accepting photocopies of documents," he added.
How DigiLocker works ?
Every citizen can log into the DigiLocker website and register to get some space reserved to store documents. Once registered, you can visit various service providers like the RTO, UIDAI and others and enter your details to pull those documents from the providers to your DigiLlocker. For example, you can visit the RTO website, enter your Driving License number or vehicle registration number and get a certified copy of your DL or RC into your DigiLocker. You can show these documents to traffic cops or other officials concerned on your mobile phone by accessing your DigLilocker from the browser or through the app.