KOCHI: The student community’s commute by public transport is about to get less bumpy.
In a significant move towards digitising public services, the Kerala government is poised to roll out the MVD Leads mobile application as the unified digital platform for authenticating student travel concession across both private and KSRTC stage carriages.
The State Transport Authority (STA) is scheduled to meet later this week, with the final approval for the app’s expanded role topping the agenda. The move signals a commitment to resolving the long-standing, practical issues surrounding student concessions — a facility intended to support education but often marred by disputes between students, educational institutions, and bus operators.
The MVD The core benefit is the transition from often-disputed paper-based systems to digital authentication. Leads app, developed by the motor vehicles department (MVD), is currently in use for conducting student driving tests. The department’s vision is to evolve it into a comprehensive, multi-purpose application.
While the department mulls over the possibility of inviting open tenders for a broader platform that could integrate NCMC (National Common Mobility Card) and student concessions, the immediate focus is on the app to provide an internal, quick-to-implement solution.
“The STA meeting slated for Friday [November 7] is expected to give the final nod. The trials are all over. The aim is to develop the app into a multipurpose one. It will address all potential issues regarding the students’ concessions, In future, it could be developed as a common mobility card,” an official noted.
Kerala’s initiative mirrors successful digital transformation efforts elsewhere, such as the BMTC in Bengaluru, where a third-party vendor, Axis Bank, manages student concession cards and digital systems.
The core benefit is the transition from often-disputed paper-based systems to digital authentication.
The app will function as a definitive verification tool for students of high school age and above, instantly confirming their eligibility to bus conductors. This is expected to streamline the process.
“Currently, concession cards are issued manually and in different formats in various districts. The students need to register on the app to get the concession cards. The app will introduce a uniform registration process for allotting concession cards across the state. This will ensure a system to cross-check the claim of a student that he/she is eligible for concession on a particular route. This will also eliminate travel in uncharted territory, a main issue between students and bus operators,” pointed out Ebenezer Chullikkad, urban transport expert and member of the Greater Cochin Development Watch (GCDW), a citizens’ collective.
Crucially, the app is not just a concession tool. It is an important part of the MVD’s larger public safety mandate. The application’s existing functionalities include the practice and timed mock tests for learner’s licence applicants, and applying for IDTR (Institute of Driving Training and Research) courses on driving correction, among others
“By bundling concession authentication with road-safety education, the MVD Leads app serves the dual purpose of modernising transport services while instilling responsible behaviour in young adults,” the MVD official added.
