Security Printing Center starts printing driving licenses

KATHMANDU: The Security Printing Center has started printing driving licenses for the Department of Transport Management.

Minister for Communications and Information Technology Jagdish Kharel inaugurated the printing process at the Center’s printing facility in Banepa on Friday.

In the first phase, the Center will print 1.2 million units over the next six months. The Center currently has the capacity to print 500 units per day. It, however, has said that the printing capacity will be scaled up gradually.

As many as 3 million people across the country are awaiting their new or renewed driving licenses, with some waiting for up to two years.

Speaking on the occasion, Minister Kharel said the long-awaited project had finally been initiated despite various legal and administrative hurdles.

The DoTM introduced a smart driving license in December 2015, replacing older paper licenses with durable cards containing an electronic chip. The new licenses, however, will feature QR codes instead of electronic chips to store driver information.