The government has decided to use the Devanagari script on the embossed number plates of vehicles from now onwards. Amending the Vehicle and Transport Management Act, 2049, the government has allowed vehicle owners to choose between Latin script and Devanagari script on embossed number plates. As of now, Latin script is used on embossed number plates. Amid criticism over the use of Latin script, the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport (MoPIT) initiated the process to use the Devanagari script on the embossed number plates of vehicles. The cabinet meeting on Monday endorsed the proposal of the MoPIT to amend Schedule 2 of the Vehicle and Transport Management Act. Narayan Prasad Bhattarai, Director General of the Department of Transport Management (DoTM) said that now the process of installing embossed number plates in Devanagari script will be started. “With the Cabinet decision, the way has been legally opened to use Devanagari script on embossed number plates,” said Bhattarai. “We will now sign an agreement with the company that has received the contract for installing embossed number plates.”

According to MoPIT, further decisions will be taken for making the use of the Devanagari script mandatory or optional on embossed number plates. “For now, the cabinet decision has allowed the use of both Devanagari and Latin scripts on embossed number plates,” said the official. The ministry plans to keep the name of the country and province in the Devanagari script.

The contract of installing embossed number plates was given to Decatur-Tiger IT, a Bangladeshi company at $44 million. The DoTM says it will now negotiate with the Bangladeshi company to implement the cabinet decision. The department officials said the cost of the contract will increase now. The department had earlier questioned the contractor company Tiger Decatur IT as to why they could not make embossed number plates in Devanagari script. The company, in response, had said that it was possible but the government should readjust the contract price. The DoTM has been facing criticism for the slow installation of embossed plates as well as costly fees for the installation. The department has installed embossed number plates on around 40,000 vehicles. An embossed number plate is a camera-readable plate that contains a microchip connected to the vehicle’s GPS system. This makes it efficient in terms of maintaining digital records of the vehicles, collecting revenue on time, monitoring vehicles, and controlling vehicle thefts. According to the ministry, it has also advanced the discussion to reduce the fee for embossed number plates. Currently, the DoTM charges Rs 2,500 for two-wheelers Rs 2,900 for three-wheelers, Rs 3,200 for light four-wheelers including cars, jeeps, vans, and tractors and Rs 3,600 for heavy vehicles for installing embossed number plates.