Study: 6 out of 10 issued driving licence without giving test; list of offenders could include MPs

According to a recent study, six out of ten people with a driving licence in India don’t have to get behind the wheel to get it. This survey, was conducted by the SaveLife foundation across 10 cities, including the five metros with the highest vehicle population. It comes at a time when the Rajya Sabha is set to discuss amendments to the Motor Vehicles Act, which have been passed by the Lok Sabha. According to a report by The Economic Times, just 12 percent of drivers in Agra were evaluated before getting their license, with 88% of the respondents admitting they did not give a driving test_._ The numbers are equally alarming for other major cities with 72 percent drivers in Jaipur , 64 percent in Guwahati, 54 percent in Delhi and half of the respondents in Mumbai too gave this mandatory test a miss said the report. [caption id=“attachment_3775423” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image. Reuters[/caption] “It was appalling to note that 59% respondents admittedly did not give a test to get a driving licence. The licencing system in India is corrupt and inefficient, while the mandatory driver training system is non-existent,” the study was quoted as saying in a report by The Times of India. It’s not just the common citizen, even members of the Lok Sabha could be in the list of offenders said the report indicating the incident when road transport minister Nitin Gadkari, initiating the debate on the bill in April, asked how many MPs had appeared for a driving licence test, and barely a few hands went up. “There are 997 regional transport offices (RTOs) in the country issuing over 1.15 crore fresh or renewed driving licences every year. A rough calculation shows that, on an average, 40 licences are issued by each RTO on any working day and it can be as high as 130 licences per day in case of Delhi,” the survey was quoted saying in a report by News Tread, clearly hinting at the hold that touts still have over the system. The survey was quoted in report saying, “In the absence of a mandatory driver training system, many in India drive without possessing the knowledge of certain key aspects of safe driving, like blind spots, safe distance, including the three-second rule, and thereby fundamentally putting lives at risk. The report also said 80% of all road users feel unsafe and 82% of pedestrians feel the same while crossing a road or walking. In Kochi, 90% of respondents said they felt unsafe on the road.” Piyush Tewari, founder and CEO of Save-LIFE Foundation was quoted in The Times of India report as saying “It is clear from the study that citizens are deeply concerned about their safety on the road. An overwhelming majority of them feel that a strong road safety law will help in improving the situation.”