Punjab govt launches universal number plates

LAHORE: The Punjab government has announced to launch universal number plates across the province.

According to a notification, the Punjab Excise Taxation and Narcotics Control Department has decided to issue number plates with the same serial numbers.

“Vehicles in all Punjab cities will now be registered under one serial from August 17, 2020,” the notification said. The Excise department is ending plates with LEA, RN, BW, and MA serials, and there will only be ‘Punjab’ number plate in the province.

The government has also launched the E-Auction App for universal number plates through which citizens can take part in the online auction.

According to the government, AAA series is introduced for cars, bikes, while CAA series for commercial vehicles. The registration for auction of attractive numbers will start from August 23, 2020.

The registration numbers for cars range from 1-999, from 1001-9990 for motorbikes, and 1-9999 for commercial vehicles. The e-auction for passenger cars’ registration will start from Rs5,000, for private motorbikes from Rs500 , while Rs1,000 is set for commercial vehicles.

As per a government advertisement, citizens can participate in an online auction by downloading the E-Auction App or visit the Excise Department website, entering online registration within three days of downloading app and chosing their favourite number.

Citizens must participate in the auction within three days of registration, while overseas Pakistanis can also take part in this auction. The department will hold first E-Auction on August 30, 2020.

Earlier, Punjab government successfully resolved the smart registration vehicle card crisis in the province will prepare 700,000 delayed cards till September 2020.

The reports further stated that a new plant is established in the DG Excise building for this purpose. The raw material for the cards has also arrived in Lahore from the United States.