By NE NOW NEWS
Guwahati: The Assam Transport Department will soon introduce a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) making driving tests mandatory for all licence applicants and restricting the issuance of licences outside an applicant’s home district, Transport Minister Charan Boro said on Friday.
Announcing the proposed reforms during a visit to the District Transport Office (DTO) in Guwahati, Boro said the department had received several complaints that driving licences were being issued without applicants appearing for driving tests.
“There have been several allegations that many people obtain driving licences without appearing for a driving test. We have also received complaints that some candidates do not even attend the test but still get licences. There are also instances where people from one district go to another district to obtain a driving licence,” the minister said.
Under the proposed SOP, applicants will be required to appear in person for a driving test before a licence is issued. The new guidelines will also bar applicants from obtaining driving licences from districts other than their own.
Boro said the reforms were being introduced in view of the growing number of complaints and the continuing rise in road accidents.
He also said several District Transport Offices across the state lack dedicated driving test facilities.
“If not this year, then by next year every DTO office will have a dedicated driving test track. I have taken this responsibility personally. Once driving test centres are established in every DTO, we will be able to ensure that only skilled drivers receive licences,” he said.
The minister said he would inspect District Transport Offices across the state to review infrastructure and monitor the implementation of the proposed reforms.
According to the State Transport Department, Assam recorded 4,219 road accidents and 1,008 fatalities between January and March this year, compared with 4,232 accidents and 1,035 deaths during the corresponding period in 2025.
Nearly half of the fatalities were reported from nine districts — Guwahati City, Kamrup, Nagaon, Lakhimpur, Sonitpur, Golaghat, Barpeta, Dhubri and Hojai.