Access Motor Vehicle Documents On The Go With mParivahan & DigiLocker

It’s 9 a.m., and Mr. Keshav is already late for work. He packs his bag and rushes to work but instead of taking the usual commute by public transport, he opts to take his bike. En route, he is stopped by traffic officials for a routine check. That’s when Mr. Keshav realizes he forgot his vehicle documents at home! With the amended to the Motor Vehicles Act, 2019, the penalty for flouting various traffic laws have been raised substantially. In the above scenario, Mr. Keshav is undoubtedly going to feel a pinch on his pocket for being negligent. In his case, these rules specify that every motor vehicle owner must carry a vehicle registration certificate (RC), pollution under control (PUC) certificate, and a copy of the motor insurance policy certificate. But do you know that you need not carry the physical copies of these documents anymore? After all, most of us carry a smartphone in our pockets now. With the Digital India initiative, amendments in many laws have eliminated the need for carrying paper-based documents. The same has been witnessed in the latest amendment to the Central Motor Vehicle Rules, which specifies that one can carry his/her RC, PUC, as well as two-wheeler / car insurance policy documents in electronic form. For this purpose, the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has authorized two mobile applications: DigiLocker and mParivahan. A digital copy of your documents can be stored in either of these applications and can be presented to traffic officials when required.  

DigiLocker

An initiative by the Ministry of Electronics & IT (MeitY), DigiLocker gives us access to authentic digital documents. Moreover, these documents have the same validity as physical documents, as per the Information Technology (Preservation and Retention of Information by Intermediaries Providing Digital Locker Facilities) Rules, 2016. You can access this facility both on mobile as well as web. Using the DigiLocker facility, you can obtain not only your registration certificate and driving license, but a host of other documents like e-Aadhaar and more. Moreover, you can even import documents issued by registered institutions under the education, banking, and insurance sector.

 

How to store documents in DigiLocker?

The process is straightforward, where you log into the application through an Aadhaar-based verification. Next, pull the documents from the registered database. These documents include your driving license and registration certificate. Motor insurance companies have a tie-up with DigiLocker that permits the storage of your digital car & two wheeler insurance policy documents. However, this application does not store your PUC, which means you still need to carry a physical copy of the same.

mParivahan

mParivahan is an application designed to facilitate paperless verification of vehicle documents and driver details. It is a simple application that can be downloaded on your smartphone. Enter your vehicle registration details after which you can produce these valid documents along with your car or two-wheeler insurance policy.  

How to store documents in mParivahan?

Download the app from Google Play Store or iOS App Store. While you need not register to view the documents in this app, registration comes handy when you want to travel without the hassle of physical documents. Signing on is a simple OTP-based process. Upon successful sign-up, you can create an account and store virtual documents like your license and vehicle registration. Navigate to My RC and My DL section under the app and add your documents and travel without worry.   Please make sure you take cognizance of these nifty apps to avoid paying hefty traffic penalties. Like in the above example, Mr. Keshav could have averted a fine if he had used either of the applications to present his documents, including the two-wheeler insurance certificate.