Bangalore: Rs 400 Crore Number Plate Scandal Unfolding in State
Daijiworld Media Network - Bangalore (SP)
Bangalore, Jul 28: It has come to light, that the state transport department is entangled in a controversial contract involving a fraud amounting to over Rs 400 crore on the issue of giving contract for providing uniform high security registration plates to the vehicles in the state, to a private company.
The union government has taken a decision to provide a uniform, secured, number plates to the vehicles all over the country, for security reasons. This has been brought into effect to avoid theft of vehicles, misuse of stolen vehicles by terrorists, naxals etc., and to be able to easily detect the modifications made if any. The state government accordingly, has initiated steps to fall in line with other states in this regard.
Mumbai-based Shivnit Utsch India Pvt Ltd has bagged the contract for providing the high security number plates for the vehicles in the state for a 15-year period. The rates quoted by the company for the number plates are Rs 550 for two-wheelers, Rs 650 for three-wheelers and Rs 1,200 for four-wheelers. It is mandatory for the citizens to pay the prescribed rates and get new high security number plates to their vehicles.
West Bengal, the first state to adopt the new system, has fixed Rs 282 for two -wheelers, Rs 298 for three-wheelers and Rs 441 for four-wheelers. The fact that the cost in Karnataka is three-fold as compared to the ones fixed by West Bengal, has raised several eye-brows. There is something fishy in this contract, people believe.
The state has about 78.51 lac registered vehicles and the differential burden on the people works to around Rs 400 crore. It is said, the company has violated several conditions, one of which, is that it should have had the experience of having supplied number plates to at least four countries. It is said, the company, in order to bag the contract, falsely declared that it had supplied number plates to four countries.
In Rajasthan, the contract for number plates had been given to this company, but after allegations were made about the wrong information furnished by it, the agreement has been put on hold. The government there is contemplating the issue of placing the company on black list.