BENGALURU: The Karnataka High Court directed the state government to finalise and publish the process to be followed by vehicle manufacturers in connection with the supply of High-Security Registration Plates (HSRP). They are to accord approval to all licence plate manufacturers with the necessary Type Approval Certificate (TAC) within 15 days.
Justice BM Shyam Prasad passed the interim order, subject to further orders of the court after petitions filed by the HSRP Manufacturers’ Association of India and others. Further, the court said the petitioners must be reserved liberty to participate in the process that is to be finalised by the state government, pursuant to this order.
The petitioners have challenged the notification dated August 17, 2023, issued by the transport department, allowing only manufacturers and their authorised dealers to fix HSRP for old vehicles registered prior to April 1, 2019.
The petitioners contended that implementation of the HSRP scheme, inviting tenders, would create a monopoly, to the detriment of the rights of other licence plate manufacturers. They prayed to court to issue directions to the transport commissioner to allow all HSRP manufacturers enlisted in the ‘Vahan’ portal, who have the necessary TAC issued by competent testing agencies approved by the Central government, to supply and fix HSRP on old vehicles registered before April 1, 2019, in Karnataka.