BENGALURU: The number of vehicles being fitted with High-Security Registration Number Plates (HSRP) has gradually been picking pace.
While November 17 was the due date for the same, it was extended to February 17, 2024, owing to only 3 lakh vehicles being registered of the 2 crore in the city.
However, the state transport department is confident that all the 2 crore vehicles that were registered before April 2019 would fall in line before the extended deadline. They are also gearing up to create publicity and awareness about HSRP among residents.
The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has mandated the affixation of HSRP number plates in all old vehicles. One of the primary reasons was to prevent misuse of vehicles by changing number plates by easily removing them. However, HSRP number plates cannot be removed once fixed as they are affixed using revets, thereby eliminating any scope for the exchange of number plates.
Speaking to TNIE, Mallikarjuna C, Additional Transport Commissioner (Enforcement South) said, “All the vehicles that were registered before April 2019 should mandatorily be fitted with HSRP number plates. The state government issued a notification in this regard and November 17 was the deadline.”
Officials of the state transport department stated that people who had objected to permission granted only to HSRP manufacturers authorized by the Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM) to fix the plates had approached the High Court. They admitted that it was due to a lack of publicity given to the public about HSRP installation.
Further, Mallikarjuna said they will soon be getting a nod from the state government to take up wide publicity. “With the RTOs that are located across the state, we will create awareness about the importance of HSRP to motivate people to consider it seriously. After the government nod, we will start giving wide publicity through advertisements,” he said.
He said the numbers are picking up and added that over 3 lakh vehicles were fitted with HSRPs up till November 17. The numbers have crossed 7 lakh till the first week of December. Post publicity, the number is expected to rise.