BRTA license seekers deserve better service

The saga of Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) irregularities continues, as does the suffering of citizens who require its services. According to a recent report on Prothom AloMore than six lakh applicants are yet to receive their driving licenses as the road transport authorities cannot complete the simple task of printing the smart cards. As a result, many applicants have been waiting for months – some as long as three years – for their permit documents.

The crisis reportedly started when the state agency, under the Awami League administration, floated tenders to companies to print smart cards for driving licenses. Insiders say that at the time, the Road Transport Ministry along with some top BRTA officials were actively trying to award the job to their favorite company, Madras Security Printers (MSP). By doing this they prolonged the tender process until MSP finally won. This delay has left more than twelve million permit applications in limbo. Moreover, MSP, which signed a five-year contract in July 2021, has since been unable to keep up with demand. It was supposed to start shipping smart cards within three months, but didn’t start until six months later. By July 2026, MSP was supposed to supply 40 lakh smart cards, but so far it has only managed to supply 20 lakh. In the meantime, applications for new permits, corrections and extensions continue to pile up.

What boggles the mind is the previous government’s insistence on awarding the contract to MSP, to the extent that it did not mind abandoning license seekers. To speed up the process, the interim government has decided to replace smart cards for new applicants with PVC cards, which will take less time to print. This should relieve some of the pressure, but it is not a good long-term solution. First, older applicants will still be issued smart cards. Second, smart cards are used worldwide; even our neighboring countries are no longer dependent on PVC cards. This situation mainly affects those who go abroad for work and need smart cards. Taking advantage of the situation, a ‘syndicate’ has reportedly taken additional money from permit applicants in the name of speeding up the process.

This has to stop. We urge the government to investigate the BRTA’s lack of initiative to resolve the crisis earlier and take appropriate action. Moreover, instead of returning to an outdated system, the government should explore the possibilities of printing smart cards locally to reduce the hassle. Finally, BRTA needs major maintenance, as the road transport and bridges consultant has also recognised. This organization has been embroiled in corruption and irregularities for years; it’s time to make it truly service-oriented.