The Delhi government is opting for online auction of VIP numbers for the first time. The base bidding price of the VIP number 0001 has been fixed Rs 5 lakh.
Delhi’s Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung has given the nod for the proposal, and now officials are waiting for a green signal from the Election Commission as the model code of conduct is implemented for parliamentary elections.
“We have requested the Election Commission to allow online auctioning of VIP numbers. This project was initiated in September 2013 by the Sheila Dikshit government. The primary aim of this initiative was to curtail black-marketing of VIP number and increase revenue of the transport department,” said a senior Delhi government official.
Earlier, only influential people were getting these numbers, and many had been sold through backdoors. With the introduction of online bidding, a transparent process will start.
“It will be a fair competition among people who want fancy or VIP numbers. Once the project starts, we will see the revenue it generates for the government. If the people bid for these numbers and the revenue goes over what was expected, the department will generate more VIP and fancy numbers,” added the official.
The process of bidding will be simple. The applicants have to enrol online with valid email addresses and identification proof on the transport departments’ website. Once enrolled, the applicants will be able to bid for any VIP or fancy number.
The highest bidder will have to submit the necessary documents to the nearest transport office to collect the number. “The project is primarily for private four-wheeler vehicles. However, the response of online bidding will decide any possibility of similar numbers for two-wheelers too,” added the official.
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