Drivers need not carry physical copies of the driving licence and vehicle documents

Drivers across Telangana will be able to see on their smartphones, whether they have fallen afoul of road rules. All they have to do is get the Telangana Transport Department’s ‘m-Wallet’ app.

The initiative will remove the uncertainty for a vehicle driver, if he has jumped the red light or violated the law on other simple counts.

Citizen friendly

This is in tune with the Government’s policy of making the administration citizen-friendly using technology.

Launched on March 30, m-Wallet helps the government leverage technology for the public, said Transport Commissioner Sandeep Kumar Sultania.

Once they download the app, drivers and owners of all types of vehicles need not carry physical copies of the vehicle’s registration certificate (RC), driving licence (DL) and insurance papers.

Developed by Radikal Tribe, a start-up based here, the app will aid enforcement personnel and citizens alike.

The minimal interface with government will reduce ‘harassment’ by police, who insist that vehicle users either produce the documents or pay a fine.

Police use a hand-held device that pulls up details of pending challans, if any, once the vehicle’s RC number or the driver/owner’s DL is fed in to it. Also, websites of the Traffic Police in Hyderabad and Cyberabad show details of pending challans, and those involved can pay fines through MeeSeva centres. What about Police Interceptors at the State border?

“Any police officer within Telangana will have to accept the m-Wallet. The Director-General of Police has already issued orders and no road user will have a problem if the papers are fine,” Mr. Sultania said, adding that senior officials from Maharashtra and Jharkhand have expressed interest in the system.

Nearly 10,000 smartphone users download the app daily. So far, over 3 lakh people have downloaded it and stored about 4.25 lakh RCs and DLs.

The department is getting a social media campaign ready to popularise m-Wallet.