In a welcoming news, the Mumbai Traffic Department has directed its officers to accept digital copies of vehicle documents stored in DIGILocker or the mParivahan app of motorists.
This decision has been taken to streamline compliance for vehicle owners and address complaints of unjustified penalties.
Moreover, it was followed by the grievances from citizens, who were issued e-challans despite presenting valid digital copies of documents.
In an official statement, Anil Kumbhare, Joint Commissioner of Police (Traffic), said that it has come to notice that some police officers are issuing e-challans against vehicle owners/drivers even when they present digital copies of their documents, such as driving licences, vehicle registration certificates, insurance, or PUCs, stored in the DigiLocker app. Complaints regarding this have been received by this office.
#MumbaiTrafficPolice @MTPHereToHelp has issued a Notification to all it's officers to accept digital copies of driving licenses, vehicle registration, insurance & PUC certificates from #DigiLocker or the #mParivahan App & not to insist on Physical Copies pic.twitter.com/dHxRdWk66U
— Adv. Sagar Devre | ॲड सागर देवरे (@MeeSagarDevre) January 4, 2025
The new directive requires traffic officers to accept these digital documents. Officers have also been reminded to verify the digital copies and refrain from issuing penalties or seizing vehicles unless there are other violations.
According to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH), documents accessed via DigiLocker or mParivahan are legally equivalent to physical copies under the Information Technology Act, 2000. Sections 4 and 5 of the Act grant legal recognition to electronic records and digital signatures, ensuring that digitally signed documents hold the same validity as original hard copies.
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