<p class="title">The government has decided to do away with the requirement of minimum educational qualification for obtaining a driving licence to boost employment opportunities, the road transport ministry said on Tuesday.</p>.<p class="bodytext">At present, under Rule 8 of the Central Motor Vehicle Rules, 1989, a transport vehicle driver needs to have passed class 8.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The ministry has initiated the process to amend Rule 8 of Central Motor Vehicles 1989 and a draft notification in this regard will be issued soon, the Ministry said. </p>.<p class="bodytext">The scrapping of minimum education norms will open up employment opportunities for a large number of unemployed youth since the country faces a shortage of 22 lakh drivers in the transport and logistics sector, which is hindering growth, said the Ministry.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Earlier Haryana Government had requested the Centre to remove the minimum qualification condition for transport vehicle licence, saying that a large number of people were unable to get licence due to minimum qualification criteria.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The ministry had already proposed the removal of the requirement for educational qualification in the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill that got passed by the previous Lok Sabha. The subject was also deliberated upon by the Standing Committee and Select committee of Parliament, said the Ministry. </p>.<p class="bodytext">Though the reasons for fixing minimum qualifications were to ensure drivers knew how to read road signages, there is no data to establish that accidents are linked to uneducated drivers, said a Ministry official.</p>.<p class="bodytext">As per road accidents data in 2016, out of 4.8 lakh road accidents in the country, in around 3.35 lakh accidents, drivers were qualified minimum 8th standard or above.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Recently Rajasthan High Court ordered cancelling of driving licence of all illiterate drivers terming they were a menace for pedestrians.</p>.<p class="bodytext">While removing the requirement of minimum educational qualification, the Ministry has strongly emphasised upon training and skill testing of drivers so that road safety is not compromised in any way, said a statement from the Ministry.</p>
<p class="title">The government has decided to do away with the requirement of minimum educational qualification for obtaining a driving licence to boost employment opportunities, the road transport ministry said on Tuesday.</p>.<p class="bodytext">At present, under Rule 8 of the Central Motor Vehicle Rules, 1989, a transport vehicle driver needs to have passed class 8.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The ministry has initiated the process to amend Rule 8 of Central Motor Vehicles 1989 and a draft notification in this regard will be issued soon, the Ministry said. </p>.<p class="bodytext">The scrapping of minimum education norms will open up employment opportunities for a large number of unemployed youth since the country faces a shortage of 22 lakh drivers in the transport and logistics sector, which is hindering growth, said the Ministry.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Earlier Haryana Government had requested the Centre to remove the minimum qualification condition for transport vehicle licence, saying that a large number of people were unable to get licence due to minimum qualification criteria.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The ministry had already proposed the removal of the requirement for educational qualification in the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill that got passed by the previous Lok Sabha. The subject was also deliberated upon by the Standing Committee and Select committee of Parliament, said the Ministry. </p>.<p class="bodytext">Though the reasons for fixing minimum qualifications were to ensure drivers knew how to read road signages, there is no data to establish that accidents are linked to uneducated drivers, said a Ministry official.</p>.<p class="bodytext">As per road accidents data in 2016, out of 4.8 lakh road accidents in the country, in around 3.35 lakh accidents, drivers were qualified minimum 8th standard or above.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Recently Rajasthan High Court ordered cancelling of driving licence of all illiterate drivers terming they were a menace for pedestrians.</p>.<p class="bodytext">While removing the requirement of minimum educational qualification, the Ministry has strongly emphasised upon training and skill testing of drivers so that road safety is not compromised in any way, said a statement from the Ministry.</p>
