More than 300,000 driving licences are to be printed and issued within the next three months, officials of the Ministry of Transport, Highways, Ports and Civil Aviation has told the Ministerial Consultative Committee.They said steps had already been taken to procure one million cards required for printing and to introduce a new driver’s license with enhanced security features later this year.
The committee meeting, chaired by Transport, Highways, Ports and Civil Aviation Minister Bimal Rathnayake in Parliament on 9 Oct., also discussed delays in issuing vehicle number plates. Officials said the selection of a supplier was in progress and, upon Cabinet approval, distribution would commence.
The Minister instructed officials to install printing machines in every province to speed up the issuance of licences.The committee further reviewed the integrated passenger transport timetable, with the Minister noting that the policy would be expanded to more regions after identifying operational gaps.
A pilot project to reduce train–elephant collisions was also discussed. Officials revealed that Rs. 2.8 million would be spent on install long-range surveillance cameras on trains operating along the Batticaloa line.The meeting was attended by Ministers, State Ministers, MPs and senior officials.