DD sellers at RTA offices in Hyderabad fleecing applicants

Hyderabad: Visitors to any RTA office in Hyderabad and Ranga Reddy district should be ready to cough up extra Rs 150 and upwards to agents for obtaining demand drafts (DD) of particular value. Taking advantage of consumers being in a hurry or unable to go to a bank to get DDs, agents are charging huge amounts from applicants.

Notwithstanding the tall talk of providing online services, there are RTAs where reliance on touts is induced indirectly.

According to the Telangana Auto and Motor Welfare Union, helpless motorists end up paying more money as they would otherwise have to miss out on their time slot, if delayed. Using the time slot as a ruse, agents and officials are fleecing customers.Union general secretary M Dayanand said the RTA offices collect payments in DDs for vehicles which are seized, second vehicle tax, entry tax for other State vehicles and for violations of Motor Vehicle Act Rules-1988, like without fitness certificate, driving licence, pollution under control certificate, insurance, permits. The motor vehicle inspector (MVI) gives a check report based on the violations and decides on penalty to be imposed on such vehicles. A vehicle-owner needs to take release orders from MVI and get a DD in favour of 'Secretary RTA (RTA area office)' towards payment of the compounding penalty.

Dayanand said "the corruption is rampant, particularly in RTA offices, where there are heavy transactions everyday, at Khairatabad, Uppal, Medchal and Ibrahimpatnam. He pointed out that there are at least two-three persons with DDs near the RTA offices, each of them earning Rs 15,000 and more everyday."

"While there is no provision for agents to sell DDs to consumers, the practice is flourishing in the RTA offices," he added. Motorists alleged brokers often collect Rs 150 for a DD worth Rs 100. Srinivas, an applicant, had to shell out hundreds extra, than the actual fee, just because officials insist on getting DD from the person at the RTA office.

Dayanand said he had visited the Uppal RTA office for registration and while paying for fitness and pollution for an eight-seater vehicle. "I wanted a DD for Rs 6,000 towards penalty imposed for not going in for fitness and pollution for a vehicle. I just had an hour left and did not want to return to RTA next day, so I gave Rs 300.