Central Government decides to remove Minimum Educational qualification for Transport Drivers - (18 Jun 2019)

Motor Vehicles

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has decided to remove the requirement of minimum educational qualification for driving a transport vehicle. The decision is in wake of providing benefit to skilled persons in economically backward areas. However, emphasis would be on competent drivers training and stringent skill testing to ensure safety. At present, as per Rule 8 of the Central Motor Vehicle Rules, 1989, a transport vehicle driver needs to have passed class 8. The removal of present requirement will open up employment opportunities for a large number of unemployed persons, especially the youth in the country.

In a recent meeting in the Transport Ministry, the Haryana government had requested for waiver of the educational qualification condition for drivers from the economically backward Mewat region. The state government had submitted that, many people in the region possess the required skill but not the required educational qualification, and were finding it difficult to obtain driving license. Hence, it was felt that driving being more a matter of skill than of educational competence. The condition of minimum educational qualification acts as a hindrance for the otherwise eligible unemployed youth. The decision will also help meet the shortage of nearly 22 lakh drivers in the transport and logistics sector, which is hindering its growth as per the official statement.

Further, the Ministry has strongly emphasized upon training and skill testing of drivers so that road safety is not compromised. Anyone applying for a driving license will have to mandatorily pass a stringent skill test. The training imparted should be of high quality covering all aspects of driving a particular type of motor vehicle. The Ministry had already proposed the removal of requirement for educational qualification in the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill that got passed by the previous Lok Sabha. In light of the above, the Ministry has initiated the process of amendment to the Rule 8 of Central Motor Vehicles 1989.

Tags : MINIMUM QUALIFICATION REMOVAL DRIVERS