Need a driving licence? Get ready for tough test

Keen to get a driving licence? It may not be as simple as you think.

Keen to get a driving licence? It may not be as simple as you think.

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To minimise accidents, the transport department has been adhering to strict norms of driving tests before issuing licences. So, the number of newly issued permanent licences in the city has reduced by 36%, and learning licences have also shown a drop by 45% in 2010-11.

The regional transport office (RTO) said the number of permanent and learning licences issued daily have come down from 1,714 in 2009 to 1,095 in 2010 and 2,130 in 2009 to 1,157 in 2010. The RTO at Andheri, which issues the most licences — about 4.1 lakh learning and 3.5 lakh permanent ones in 2009 — has shown a drop of 54% in the learning and 48.8% in the permanent licences in 2010. The permanent and learning licences issued by the Tardeo RTO have seen a drop by 25% and 49% respectively.

RTO officials said the trend will continue. “Due to strict tests and inspection of driving schools, the number will continue to drop,” said an Andheri RTO official. Although the Wadala RTO may not have seen a major drop, it too has recorded a 4.2% decrease in issuing of permanent licences and 1% in learning licences.

Nitin Dossa, executive chairman of Western India Automobile Association, said: “The figures are good, but they need to come down further.”