[amahale]

I am facing a problem while renewing my DL. I applied for renewal online, paid the fees and got the medical certificate done and uploaded the relevant documents. The status was Verification pending for about 2 weeks and hence I visited the RTO (KA51 - Electronic City, Bangalore). There they mentioned that my Aadhar does not have my fathers name hence they cannot process further. They asked me to add my fathers name in Aadhar so that the authentication can be done via Aadhar.

While renewing online I could not authenticate via Aadhar as it said "Family member name mismatch".

The officer said that adding fathers name in Aadhar is the only way forward. The problem is my fathers name is not mentioned in any address proof that I have, hence unable to change it. My passport has my fathers name, but still not part of address, so I am kind of stuck.

Any suggestions please?

[itwasntme]

Had a reasonable experience at KA50 - Yelahanka RTO while renewing my Driving License (DL). Needed an address change based on my already updated Aadhaar + usual renewal as it was expiring in November.

This was the timeline:

22 June:
Submitted all required documents and paid fees online. Could not e-verify the Aadhaar for some reason, kept failing. Hence chose to upload it instead.

11 July:
Got fed-up at the lack of movement/updates and visited the RTO myself. Yelahanka RTO looked abandoned as most services have been made online, and there were almost no other customers around.
Spoke to a very patient and polite Assistant RTO who immediately logged in to view my application status and made a few calls as well. Explained to me that yes, they were struggling to cope with the online volume, and also added that my uploaded documents were very hazy and illegible. Showed him the originals including my badly faded existing DL.
Immediately verified them all and approved it on the spot. Told me to expect it in 2 weeks via Speedpost.

26/27 July:
Things suddenly started moving and I got SMS'es with multiple updates.

3 August:
Received smartcard at home :-). All details correct!

Takeways
The new online system has brought a lot of transparency.
If the process gets stuck for some reason, do visit the RTO and check with the officers directly.
There is NO need to engage touts any more at least for DL renewal.
In my opinion, things will only get better!

[noopster]

Originally Posted by noopster

One of my friends had to be at KA05 (Jayanagar RTO) recently so I asked him to check about adding my wife's 2004 DL issued there into the digital database so that we could get the address changed to MH12, where we reside now. All it takes apparently is a copy of the original license and address proof (Aadhar card) to be submitted at the issuing RTO.

My friend even got me an agent contact but advised that it can be done by ourselves, so will do it next time we are in Bangalore (her DL expiry is still a couple of years away).

My respect for the Sarathi/parivahan system keeps going up. Today I just tried checking if my wife's 2004 Karnataka-issued license was in the system. Last time I had checked, about 8 months ago, it definitely wasn't and was directing me to the backlog system. Unfortunately KA doesn't offer backlog updation as an end-user facing service.

But today, wonder of wonders, I entered what I thought would be her digitized license number (in the format KA05200400XXXXX) and the digitized DL did show up. All details accurate down to spellings, which is bloody impressive!

Didn't waste time, logged into the MH website (you always start from the RTO of your current location), entered the KA DL number when prompted and followed the process step-by-step till I saw this magical screen:



Took printouts of each of the forms and will ask the missus to take the printout and her original KA license and Aadhar card to the MH12 RTO one of these days and get her photo & signature taken, which seems to be the only part they need to physically validate. After that they will speed post it to the changed address (that part of the process works, I have already tried it with my MH02 DL about a year ago).

The only thing you need is an Aadhar card with your current address updated. It asked to e-validate the Aadhar (which essentially sends an OTP to your registered mobile) and then automatically picks up the Aadhar address, which it then defaults to "Present address".

The UX is pretty good: only at one place I got stuck for a while since I didn't figure out initially that the "permanent address" continues to be the original address at which the original license was issued (in this case the Bangalore address we were living at in 2004). It's a little confusing since the Permanent Address field showed blank when I was trying and after trying unsuccessfully to update it, I finally gave up and just submitted the form...only to discover that th back-end had picked it up.

The cost? 466/- all inclusive for the address change and about an hour of computer time. Worth it eh? The hardest part of it was compressing the PDF of the old license to under 200 kb. I had to reach out to my team at work for that and they were very helpful (for what it's worth, I used a free service called ilovepdf.com but the compression wasn't enough there so used the output from that process to do another compression at some website called 11zon - I feel so tech-savvynow!)

Will keep you folks posted. For now I think the difficult part is done, fingers crossed!

Happy Diwali!

[StarVector]

Hi,
I applied for a LL for my wife last month online (Dy RTO Pimpri Chinchwad). My wife already had a licence for LMV and she wanted to add 2 wheeler on her existing licence. The online application
process was quite simple. It's been a month since I applied but the application is still pending with RTO. When I applied, the portal mentioned that the process is faceless. Wanted to know from fellow members, whether they have faced similar issue in the past and also if it's required to visit the RTO in person for approval.

[GrandTourer]

Hey Folks,

I have applied online for a duplicate licence & syncing of address between Aadhaar and DL in mid Dec in MH RTO through Sarathi. There has been no action on the application at all. Scrutiny (the first step itself) is pending. Anyone know how long it generally takes to get the online application moving?

I feel the physical RTO visit would have worked faster in at least getting the application moving (with a fixed appointment date).

[noopster]

Originally Posted by StarVector

Hi,
It's been a month since I applied but the application is still pending with RTO. When I applied, the portal mentioned that the process is faceless. Wanted to know from fellow members, whether they have faced similar issue in the past and also if it's required to visit the RTO in person for approval.

Came here looking for a solution to exactly this. Both mine and my wife's DL are with the MH12 RTO for address change. Both cases claim to be "faceless". Each case is slightly different, so will try and summarise separately:

My DL: It's MH02 issued and I have already got an address change donethrough MH12 RTO (to my previous address in Pune) around 2 years ago. Thought I may as well update it to my current/permanent address, so I followed the same procedure as last time: online through Sarathi web application in January and followed it up with a visit to the RTO with my old DL which needed to be handed in. They assured me it would happen in 2 weeks but it didn't so I paid another visit and the status changed to "Scrutiny" followed by "Approval of endorsements on DL" on 23rd Feb. Since then it's almost a month and the process is stuck at "Printing of DL in Form 7" stage. I'm carrying around a printout of the address change application (plus my DL already updated in Digilocker) but have a Revv booking coming up where they say they will only accept physical DL, so am wondering how to speed up the printing and dispatch of the DL.

Wife's DL: This is a more complex case: her DL was a paper-type issued in Karnataka (scroll up to me previous posts for full details). During the pandemic KA05 RTO uploaded the backlog into the Sarathi system so we was able to login and request an address change to the Pune address. There were some complications that arose since the original RTO folks had not "approved" the backlog entry (needed some backhand intervention in Bangalore) but it finally came through. The case is now with MH12 RTO at exactly the same stage as my DL ("Scrutiny" and "Approval of Endorsements on DL" is completed, "Printing of DL in Form 7" is underway). Wife doesn't have Digilocker so is managing with a stamped receipt that MH12 RTO issued her (they refused to issue me one, just weeks later!)

Anyway, need both these applications to move forward so seeking advice. Should I "raise a grievance" on the Sarathi portal? Will that work? Someone advised me that another visit to the RTO will only result in them demanding speed money, which would be disappointing since in my previous interactions, they have been above board in all transactions.

Any suggestions?

[libranof1987]

Originally Posted by noopster

Any suggestions?

As I'd suggested earlier, drop in an RTI. This gets work done faster than "do you know who my father is". I'm serious. I have first hand experience, and several friends I've suggested this to, have had similar experiences. You will get resolution, or at least next steps, within two days.

[noopster]

Originally Posted by libranof1987

As I'd suggested earlier, drop in an RTI. This gets work done faster than "do you know who my father is". I'm serious. I have first hand experience, and several friends I've suggested this to, have had similar experiences. You will get resolution, or at least next steps, within two days.

I remember you mentioning it when we spoke last. Can you expand on it a bit? Do I do this online? Through PGPortal? Will get it done today itself.

[libranof1987]

Originally Posted by noopster

I remember you mentioning it when we spoke last. Can you expand on it a bit? Do I do this online? Through PGPortal? Will get it done today itself.

Go to to submit a new request: https://rtionline.gov.in/

Select Ministry of Road Transport and Highways for the Ministry/Dept and Public Authority drop-downs.

Then write detailed description of the issue, with supporting documents.

I'd suggest filing two separate RTIs for self and wife.

[AutoNoob]

Originally Posted by noopster

Anyway, need both these applications to move forward so seeking advice. Should I "raise a grievance" on the Sarathi portal? Will that work? Someone advised me that another visit to the RTO will only result in them demanding speed money, which would be disappointing since in my previous interactions, they have been above board in all transactions.

Originally Posted by libranof1987

Go to to submit a new request: https://rtionline.gov.in/

Select Ministry of Road Transport and Highways for the Ministry/Dept and Public Authority drop-downs... Then write detailed description of the issue, with supporting documents.

I'd suggest filing two separate RTIs for self and wife.

I am not offering a solution, but sharing a probable reason for the delay. Few weeks back I came across this news from NCR region :

Source : Hindustan Times
Microchip shortage delays issuance of driving licences in Noida

Officials said about 6,000 licences are approved every month, but throughout January, no new licence was issued. The chip shortage has been going on since November, which means that Gautam Budh Nagar has a backlog of around 18,000 driving licences, said officials.

[noopster]

Originally Posted by AutoNoob

I am not offering a solution, but sharing a probable reason for the delay. Few weeks back I came across this news from NCR region :

That's been a reason for delays in issuance of DLs and even RC smartcards in the past but seems there is another reason!

Pune: Around 68 thousand employees on strike

Officials and employees of about 32 departments of the government, including state government, semi-government, district council, revenue, municipal corporation, have gone on an indefinite strike from today for the main demand that the old pension scheme should be implemented. In this strike, around 68 thousand officers and employees of Pune district are on strike.

According to the reports, the government employees have gone to infinite strike demanding.

-The old pension scheme should be implemented

-Balwadi, Anganwadi, Asha workers, transfer employees should be taken in government service permanently

Sent my driver to the RTO to today to check on the status and he put me on the phone with a harassed-sounding lady who explained to me that she was the only one sitting there collecting applications from the public and that nothing would be processed until the rest of the employees were back!

I almost felt sorry for her. Anyway, got to wait now till this stuff ends.

[noopster]

Originally Posted by noopster

T
I almost felt sorry for her. Anyway, got to wait now till this stuff ends.

Finally, a happy ending! Both our DLs arrived at the same time by speed post last week. It took 2 or 3 visits each so its not strictly 100% online as the Srathi portal suggests. But what's important is that got done!

[sagarpadaki]

Originally Posted by noopster

But today, wonder of wonders, I entered what I thought would be her digitized license number (in the format KA05200400XXXXX) and the digitized DL did show up. All details accurate down to spellings, which is bloody impressive!

My DL number is 1726/2008-09 issued in KA02 RTO. How to covert this in the KA05200400XXXXX that you have mentioned above? Thanks

[hp52_vishy]

Originally Posted by AutoNoob

I am not offering a solution, but sharing a probable reason for the delay. Few weeks back I came across this news from NCR region :

This is a big global issue, here in Switzerland they issue a SwissPass card which took 4-5 months for them to supply instead of 2-3 weeks due to the same chip shortage reason. This is also the reason, why many car manufacturers have a long delivery timeline after booking.

Originally Posted by sagarpadaki

My DL number is 1726/2008-09 issued in KA02 RTO. How to covert this in the KA05200400XXXXX that you have mentioned above? Thanks

well the first 4 characters are the RTO code (KA02 in your case) followed by YYYY, last four characters would be 1726 and fill in rest with 0s. So for your case it will be KA0220080001726. You can actually test this out on Sarathi website itself by entering some personal details and this should show your photo. Hope this works. Please DM me if anything goes wrong, happy to help

I am a big fan of how Transport Department has digitized most of the services over many years. Recently, I even looked up from available numbers and booked a registration number for my car (Vaahan) before delivery. Dad was beaming at how times have changed from getting random numbers or using influence to get a "almost fancy" number.

[hrman]

I had a delayed but pleasant experience with my online DL renewal. Thought of sharing it here.

In April 23, I realized my DL of 20 years was due to expire in Nov 23. It was originally issued in Mumbai, but converted to a Karnataka RTO chip based card when I added the endorsement for two wheeler to my existing four wheeler license. This was in 2012.

I went to the Sarathi website and tried to apply for renewal and address change since I had moved residences in 2015 and the DL had the old address. For some strange reason, the website for Karnataka RTO does not allow changing the address in the online form on first try. You need to do some tweak which I discovered by accident i.e. you need to accept / cancel some error message and then it allows you to edit the address. Strange!

Meanwhile I uploaded the required documents with the doctor’s certificate, but my Aadhaar authentication failed since I had not published my father’s name in Aadhaar (?). It gave an error that authentication failed due to relative name mismatch.
Anyway went for manual authentication and made the payment around 18th April, then the wait started. I used to check the status almost every week and it still remained in the scrutiny stage. After 3 months I decided to visit the RTO with all form copies, originals for verification. One counter first told me to add father’s name in Aadhaar at an enrolment center and then resubmit the forms with the acknowledgement and old DL. Got that done and submitted the forms. I was told by a Paan eating lady at the counter that while the process is “faceless", they need to see us face to face to process the application further i.e. the Application submission is faceless but requires a visit for the old DL surrender.

After submission, they gave an ETA of 2 weeks for dispatch of the DL at home. I started getting SMSs of the application being approved and DL printed. It was now available on my Digilocker app with an extension upto 2033. When the 2 weeks were up and the status showed to be dispatched, I visited the RTO again. They said the card is ready but they cannot hand it over physically. I will get it by post in a week. I received it within 4 days.

I am happy that I was able to complete the whole address change and renewal process without any agent or any additional fees. While the application process is online, I feel they should strive to make it truly faceless. But impressive nevertheless. And no agents hounding you at the Electronics City RTO like the earlier days, it appears most DL processes are online therefore eliminating the need for a middleman.

Key takeaway is you should visit the RTO immediately after online submission to move the process.