'BOSS' and 'PAPA' get ready to Pay-up

Lucknow: 'BOSS' and 'PAPA' will now have to pay out more money for saying the same on their vehicles number plate.

Reportedly, 25 fancy numbers have been identified by the Regional Transport Office (RTO), Lucknow and will be made 'paid' like VIP numbers.

Why? Because these registration numbers when embossed in a stylish way on the vehicles number plates read out like words. Say, 4141 spells out as ‘PAPA’ and 0214 becomes ‘RAM’ when written in Hindi, while ‘8055’ becomes ‘BOSS’ under a particular font.

According to the RTO officials, this proposal put forward by them to the transport department will serve a dual purpose. One, it will discourage people from the practice of using a fancy number plate, and another, it would also help in bringing additional revenue to the transport department.

In the proposal which the RTO officials have sent for consideration, they have stated that such fancy numbers are always in very high demand. This demand can be seen through the many requests they receive for the same and in the way people keep their vehicles unregistered until the time they get their preferred registration number which could take weeks or even more. The work of allotting fancy numbers puts added pressure on RTO employees also.

Section 51 of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989 clearly outlines the specifications on how registration numbers have to be written. It also makes sporting fancy registration number plates a punishable offence. If anybody is found flouting these rules and regulations by putting fancy number plates on their vehicles, fines are imposed on them. However, the fine amount is a meagre Rs. 100 which does not help in curbing this rampant practice among riders, especially youngsters.

Raghvendra Singh ARTO (administration), Lucknow was quoted saying, "Putting a price tag on such numbers might discourage the practice of stylish number plates.”

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