Driving Licence – What is a Driving Licence and what is the use?

In India, one cannot operate/ drive motor vehicle unless authorized by the government. In this matter, the government of India issues Driving licence (DL) which permits the citizens to operate or drive motor vehicles like cars, motorcycles, trucks, buses, etc, without any supervision. The issuance of driving licence is done through the government agency known as the Road transport Authority or Road Transport Office (RTO) of the concerned state.

As per Motor Vehicle Act, 1988 no individual in the country is permitted to drive any kind of motor vehicle without a driving licence in public places. Therefore, if one wishes to drive any type of motor vehicle, holding an authorized driving licence issued by the government is must. Even if one wants to practice driving in order to learn, he/she needs to hold a learners licence too and then qualify the driving test first to acquire a permanent DL.

Types of driving licence in India:

One can apply for any type of vehicle driving licence as per individual needs and on successful approval, get an authorized DL. The eligibility criteria vary with the type of DL applied for. Following is the list of popular vehicle classes for which licence can be applied for, with RTO/ RTA.

• Motorcycle with engine capacity of 50 cubic centimeter (often abbreviated as cc) or less than 50cc
• Motorcycle with gear, motorcycle with a cubic capacity of 50cc or more
• Light Motor Vehicle (LMV) including cars
• All motorcycle types including motorcycle with gears
• Motorcycle of any engine capacity without gears including scooters and mopeds
• LMV for non transport purposes
• LMV intended for commercial purposes
• Heavy passenger motor vehicle
• Heavy goods motor vehicle
• Candidates holding a heavy vehicle driving licence can apply for heavy trainer licence