Smart cards come with insurance

At the inaugural function, Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa said that the smart cards were a citizen-friendly initiative and such adoption of IT-enabled measures would assist in providing better services to the citizens.

He spoke about the setting up of drivers’ training centres in Hassan, Agari Bommanahalli, Kengeri and Hubli. Yeddyurappa also said that upgradation of 1,500 kms of highway roads was underway and that the weight of the lorries plying on the highways would be strictly monitored to maintain roads in good condition.

Transport Minister R Ashok said that the new cards would be available in all the 55 RTOs in six months time. “The smart card also prevents creation of forged documents,” he added. At present, only five RTOs will be issuing these cards, and the other five RTOs in the City will be implementing it in the next 10 days. The card has a microprocessor based chip with 16 KB RAM embedded on the card.

It can store data digitally, allow easy access of data and helps in the creation of a national database of vehicles. It can record traffic violations made by the driving licence holder and also record conviction particulars of accidents. The cost of the card is Rs 200 and the driving licence has an accident insurance of Rs 1 lakh for death and Rs 50,000 for permanent disability for a period of one year from the date of issue. All road users are expected to get the new cards within two years time. The software was developed by National Informatics Limited. The Transport Department in coordination with Rosmerta Technologies will cover 82 lakh vehicles and 90 lakh vehicle users. Transport Principal Secretary Shankarlingegowda and Transport Commissioner Bhaskar Rao were also present at the function.