Soon, two-wheelers can get fancy number plates

NEW DELHI: After a wait of three years, two-wheelers will finally be eligible for fancy number plates in Delhi.

Moreover, all vehicle owners wanting to retain the number of their old vehicle for their new one will be able to do so sitting in their home.

The Aam Aadmi Party government is going to amend the Delhi Motor Vehicles Rules, 1993 to make two-wheelers eligible for fancy number plates.

The amendment has been approved by Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal and will be put forward for comments from the public for a month by the government.

Once notified, the minimum price for two-wheelers for the golden number 0001 will be ₹50,000, while bidding for numbers from 0002 to 0009 will begin from ₹30,000.

Gauging the high demand for numbers like 0786, 1111, 9999, 7777 and 1000, the transport department has set a base price of ₹20,000 for them. Another category of numbers like 0100, 2222, 8888, 6666 and so on will be sold for ₹15,000.

Transport minister Kailash Gahlot told Hindustan Times that till now, there were no rules under which two-wheelers could be included in the fancy number plate scheme. VIP numbers from 0001 to 0100 are currently available only for four-wheelers.

This is despite the fact that two-wheelers are double in number (over 64 lakh) in Delhi compared to cars (around 35 lakh).

“A lack of policy for twowheelers in the scheme had also given rise to corruption which would now be eliminated with the entire system being made online,” Gahlot said.

FOR INSTANT NUMBERS

While all premium numbers will be issued only through e-auctions that take place every 15 days, the government has created a fifth category where numbers will be issued on the spot on first-come-first-serve basis.

Under this category, the transport department will charge ₹5,000 from those who want to get any other registration mark of their choice.

“Such numbers are being charged ₹5,000 as it would require jumping from the chronological order of numbers from a series of registration marks,” Gahlot said.

At the dealer’s store, the vehicle owner will be directed to an online portal for instant payment and that number would be taken.

“The portal will show the available numbers in green and those in red would mean they are already taken,” said KK Dahiya, special commissioner (transport).

FOR RETENTION OF NUMBER

Any new vehicle owner who wants to retain their the number of their old vehicle will be able to do so by logging into the same online portal.

“At present, retention of old number happens on a very small scale as people do not know about it.

“It is also completely on the discretion of the licensing officer with no prescribed money for it,” Gahlot said.

The new rule will allow fourwheeler drivers to retain their old number by paying a fixed amount of ₹1,000 and ₹500 for two-wheelers. However, the number has to be at least threeyears-old to be eligible for retention.