Here’s how you can get a permanent driving licence in India

In India, the first step to getting a permanent driving licence is to get a learner’s licence. It is only after 30 days of acquiring a learner’s licence can a person become eligible to apply for a permanent driving licence. The procedure of obtaining a learner’s licence online is detailed here . [caption id=“attachment_2491896” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Representative image. AFP[/caption] Post the 30-day mandatory waiting period, a person can apply for a permanent driving licence online via the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways website. Here are the steps to be followed for converting a learner’s licence to a permanent driving licence: a) The applicant has to visit the Sarathi website of the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways. The first page prompts you to select your ‘State’. Once selected, you will be taken to the next page. On the left side of the homepage of the website there is a column titled ‘Driving Licence’ under which there is an option - ‘Apply Online’. The applicant has to click on the ‘Apply Online’ option, which will then open up a dropdown menu from which the ‘New Driving Licence’ option has to be chosen.  b). The applicant would now be taken to a page that mentions all the five stages to be followed to complete the application process. The stages are: 1. Fill Applicant Details 2. Upload Documents 3. Upload Photo and Signature if required (applicable for only some states) 4. DL Test Slot Booking (applicable for only some states) 5. Payment of Fee c) Clicking the ‘continue’ option on the page will direct the applicant to a page where the number of the learner’s licence and date of birth of the applicant would have to be filled up.  d) Now instructions for submitting driving licence application form will appear. The applicant has to read the instructions carefully and click on the ‘continue’ button to proceed. e) Now the applicant will be asked if he or she is holding a learner’s licence, a foreign driving licence, or a defence licence. In this case, the applicant has to tick the learner’s licence box and proceed. The applicant now has to fill up the blank mentioning the number of his learner’s licence. He or she has to fill up the date of birth in DDMMYYYY format and click ‘OK’. f) Now the applicant will be taken to a form where personal details like name, age, and address of the applicant are to be filled up. g) In the next stage, the applicant has to upload all the required supporting documents like address proof, age proof and identity proof along with passport size photograph and also his or her signature. h) Now the applicant will be asked to choose the timing for the driving licence appointment. Here the applicant has to mention the date and time when he or she will be available to go directly to the RTO and appear for driving test. Once the payment to submit the driving licence application form is made, it will be sent to the RTO. On submission, an auto-generated ‘Web Application Number’ will appear on the screen for future reference and for checking the status of the application. The following list of documents are to be submitted along with the application form: 1. Learner’s licence. 2. Proof of address (Any one of the following document can be submitted as proof of address- Ration card, passport, voter’s identity card (EPIC Card), life insurance policy, utility bills like electricity, telephone bill, gas bill, State or Central Government issued payslip). 3. Proof of age (Any one of the following can be submitted as proof of age- Pan card, school matriculation certificate, voter’s identity card (EPIC card), passport, birth certificate, Aadhar Card). 4. Driving school certificate (for transport vehicle driving licence applicants). 5. All documents about the vehicle to be used for the driving test. 6. Passport-sized photograph.