KATHMANDU: The Department of Transport Management (DoTM) has said that it would start accepting applications for new driving licenses only after the Dashain festival.
The 15-day Dashain festival concludes in the second week of October.
The DoTM suspended driving license services and electronic vehicle registration (EDL-VRS) indefinitely following vandalism, looting and arson at its offices during the Gen Z protests on September 8 and 9. Electronic equipment, printers and servers at DoTM offices were destroyed by the protesters.
“We have begun repairing the damaged servers. All services related to driving license will resume only after the Dashain festival,” said DoTM Director Keshav Khatiwada.
Khatiwada, who heads DoTM’s IT Division, said more than 20,000 printed licenses and a large number of smart cards along with the printers were destroyed in the fire. “Since the servers were also damaged, we are not in a position to resume our services immediately. The plan is to reopen applications after the Dashain holidays,” Khatiwada told MeroAuto.
“Much of the backup data has not been affected. Since we also have backups at the data center in Singha Durbar, our license-related records are secure,” DoTM Director Keshav Khatiwada.
He added that the exact number of licenses and smart cards destroyed in the arson is still being verified. “We have started operating from temporary sheds built for service seekers. Damage assessments are ongoing,” Khatiwada said. “Some driving licenses that were safely recovered will be distributed soon.”
Although the building was destroyed and some hard disks stolen, Khatiwada confirmed that data of users remains intact. “Much of the backup data has not been affected. Since we also have backups at the data center in Singha Durbar, our license-related records are secure,” he said.
He added that more than 100,000 smart cards stored for printing licenses have been safely recovered.
The DoTM receives 6,000-7,000 applications every day for new driving license and renewal of expired license. It had also been issuing about 500 licenses every day under emergency services. All these services have now come under a grinding halt, according to Khatiwada.
DoTM had been providing license-related services from 42 transport management offices across the country.
