Chip-based vehicle registration cards introduced

Smartcards contain details of vehicle, owner; move to curb tampered papers

ISLAMABAD:

The Excise and Taxation Department on Friday started the issuance of chip-based registration cards containing details of both the vehicle and the owner.

According to Deputy Commissioner (DC) Capt (retd) Mushtaq Ahmed, this is the first time a multi-security ‘smartcard’ had been introduced to replace the existing registration books.

The project was initially proposed in January by then DC Mujahid Sherdil, and took nearly ten months to complete. The initiative has been launched in collaboration with the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA).

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The card contain details including name of the vehicle owner, his identity card number, chassis number of the vehicle, a microprocessor chip with multiple apps, and a complete record of the particular vehicle.

Ahmed said through the card, stored data could be protected against unauthorised access and tampering.

“The basic objective of the project is to convert the decades-old system into a modern one, as is practiced internationally,” he said.



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At present, 850,000 vehicles are registered with the excise department. The administration has begun issuing new cards at a cost of Rs1,450. The DC said the department will convert old books into smartcards on request of the customer. Both fresh and converted cards will be charged the same aforementioned amount, he added.

In addition, the department will issue a sticker for the extension of a vehicle’s token.

The DC said a high number of stolen vehicles are on the roads with fake registration papers, adding that the new system will help overcome this problem.

“In case a card is lost and the vehicle owner reports it, it will be blocked before issuing a new one,” he said.

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SSP (Operations) Sajid Kiani appreciated the new system and said it will help overcome the issue of tampered vehicle registration papers.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 17^th, 2015.