Slots for booking HSRPs increased to 25,000 per day: STA to Orissa HC

Priya Ranjan Swain Published On : Oct 31, 2022 at 6:36 PM Updated On : Oct 31, 2022 at 6:36 PM

Cuttack: The State Transport Authority (STA) today informed the Orissa High Court that slots for booking High Security Registration Plates (HSRPs) have been raised to 25,000 per day.

While hearing a PIL on October 26, the HC had directed the Transport department of the state government to submit an affidavit regarding the availability of slots for affixing HSRPs on vehicles till December end.

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“Steps have been taken by the Transport department to increase the slots for fitment of HSRPs on vehicles registered prior to April 1, 2019. Acting upon the direction of the department, the OEMs (vehicle manufacturers) have enhanced the slots through their authorized HSRP vendors. Now, vehicle owners can get slots easily to affix HSRPs on their vehicles,” said the STA in its affidavit.

The STA also informed that HC that facility for online booking of slots for fitment of HSRPs has been made available at all Mo Seva Kendras across Odisha. “The Transport department had earlier urged the Chief Executive Officer of Odisha Computer Application Centre (OCAC) and the Electronics and Information Technology department Secretary to make the required arrangements to provide online booking facility for HSRPs at Mo Seva Kendras,” revealed the STA in its affidavit.

This apart, HSRP facilitation cenetres have been made functional at all RTO and ARTO offices by the OEMs. The authorized vendors of OEMs have also opened temporary HSRP fitment centres at several places across the state, informed the STA to the HC.

The next hearing on the case has been posed to November 28.

Notably, two bus owners—Pabitra Mohan Khatua and Madhab Mohanty—had filed a PIL in the HC alleging unreasonable and impractical deadlines laid by the state government for affixing HSRPs without arranging proper infrastructure. The petitioners had highlighted the absence of proper infrastructure for online booking for HSRPs.

It is worth mentioning here that the Transport department has once again extended the deadline for affixing High Security Registration Plates (HSRPs) on vehicles registered prior to April 1, 2019 by a month.

HSRPs shall be fitted on all vehicles carrying Odisha registration marks and numbers, registered prior to April 1, 2019, by February, 2023, said the STA on October 29.