Following special orders from the Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the Transport Department started the process of providing driving licenses to 8,000 applicants from Lower Dir whose cards were pending for the past two years.
However, despite the provision of licenses, the problems of the citizens could not be resolved due to administrative indiscipline and the complexity of the procedure. According to the recent schedule issued by the provincial government, the target was to clear all pending licenses in Malakand division, including Dir, Swat, and Buner by mid-January. The Transport Department, implementing this deadline, completed the printing of the cards and sent them for distribution at the local level.
Talking to local media in Timergara, citizens and transporters said there is no organized counter or information staff for citizens coming to the offices to collect licenses, which is creating severe rush and chaos there.
It has become difficult for people belonging to remote and mountainous areas of Lower Dir to make repeated trips to Timergara. Citizens said that they have already paid heavy fees and taxes, so they could not spend an extra amount for collection.
The public is demanding that the transport department send these licenses directly to the addresses of the applicants through the post to avoid wasting time in the offices.
Although the transport department claims that the process of distribution of cards has been expedited, until the distribution procedure is made easy and transparent, the citizens will not be able to get the full benefit of this relief. Local constituencies have appealed to the Chief Minister to issue instructions not only to issue licenses but also to improve the system for their easy delivery.
Read also: KP Transporters staged protest against delay in issuing driving licences
