Delhi: Chaos again as HSRP website remains down for most part of the day, government says website was hacked

Panicked by the recent crackdown on owners of vehicles not having high-security registration plates (HSRPs) or the fuel-based colour coded stickers, scores of people

Panicked by the recent crackdown on owners of vehicles not having high-security registration plates (HSRPs) or the fuel-based colour coded stickers, scores of people on Wednesday tried to apply for HSRPs only to find that the Delhi government’s website was down. The state transport department later clarified that their dedicated website https://www.bookmyhsrp.com was hacked.

HT Image

“We received several complaints from people today[Wednesday] about the website being down. When we asked the company which operates the website, it informed the department that their website was hacked at 10.50am and the problem was not resolved until late afternoon,” said a senior transport official.

A spokesperson of HSRP manufacturer Rosmerta Safety Systems Private Limited said the company has registered a complaint with the cybercrime cell of the Delhi police.

Meanwhile, vehicle owners who tried applying for the HSRPs or the colour coded stickers on Wednesday said they were unable to book an appointment.

“I reached till the point of selecting the date of collection of the number plate. But, after that, it said there was some server error and the process did now get through despite me attempting 4-5 times,” said Arvind, who goes by his first name.

Another vehicle owner said the web page hanged when she tried to make the payment. “It is illegal to fine us when even after trying so many times we cannot apply for an HSRP,” she said.

On Wednesday, the transport department said it prosecuted 320 owners who did not have HSRPs on their vehicles. On Tuesday, when the crackdown was launched, 239 fines were issued for the same violations.

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