Soon every traffic offence you commit will show negatively on your driving licence. The government is working on a graded points-based system for driving licences, Union minister for Minister for Road, Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari has said, under which repeated traffic violations could eventually lead to a licence being suspended or cancelled.Gadkari said plans were also underway to set up 1,600 driving training centres across the country. So far, 24 centres are operational and another 112 are in the pipeline, while around 10 lakh drivers have already received training.
Graded points system for driving licence soon
The framework is intended to distinguish between motorists who maintain a responsible driving record and those who repeatedly violate traffic rules.“My ministry is planning to introduce graded point system in driving licences and vehicle registration certificate,” Gadkari said at the 66th SIAM Annual Convention 2026 recently.The proposed system would assign penalty points to motorists for different traffic offences. If a driver accumulates points beyond a specified limit, the authorities could suspend the driving licence or cancel it altogether.“Every offense will cut points on the driving licence. And after a particular limit, the licence will get suspended or even cancelled,” the minister said.Drivers with a good record could be eligible for incentives, including possible benefits from insurance companies, while habitual offenders would face tougher consequences.“This is exactly the people who have good points, they will get incentives from insurance or companies or whatever benefits will be there. But those who are habitually making mistakes, the penalty is there. That is the principle behind this policy,” Gadkari said.According to the Union minister, improving driving behaviour will be crucial to addressing India’s road safety concerns, particularly in view of the country’s high number of road accidents.“Driver behaviour is a big problem. We are now doing a lot of things for that,” he said.Gadkari also stressed that motorists who repeatedly break traffic rules need to be held accountable, rather than being allowed to continue dangerous driving without facing consequences.“We are actually the person who is making constant mistakes and we are learning it. That will not be appropriate. Somewhere, we have to challenge the people where this misdeed is responsible for the consequences,” he said.
Bharat NCAP 2.0 coming soon
The government plans to introduce a new version of the Bharat NCAP programme from October 2027, under which the entire safety framework of vehicles will be assessed as part of efforts to tackle the country’s serious road accident problem, Gadkari said.He also announced a separate scheme aimed at reducing emissions from vehicles compliant with BS IV norms.The proposed emission-control device can significantly lower particulate matter (PM) and NOx emissions, with the device costing around Rs 4,000-5,000.“I am going to announce a new scheme for a rare emission control device. Trials are completed for the device. Emissions after retrofitment on BS 4 vehicles same as BS 6. So this option is there,” he said.Bharat NCAP (Bharat New Car Assessment Program), launched in 2023, is India’s official independent vehicle safety rating system. Under the programme, passenger cars undergo crash tests and receive safety ratings ranging from 1 to 5 stars, based on their ability to protect adult and child occupants in a collision.Gadkari underlined the need for a wider approach to vehicle safety while referring to the scale of road accidents in India.“We are moving forward with Bharat NCAP 2. This is a very important programme wherein, from October 2027, the entire safety chain will be evaluated. This is very important because road accidents are a big problem… we are number one in the world”.He also said India is currently the world’s third-largest passenger vehicle market. According to Gadkari, the time and cost involved in vehicle testing in India are considerably lower than the global cost of Rs 2.5 crore under NCAP.Despite measures being taken to improve road safety, the number of accidents and fatalities remains high, Gadkari said. The country witnesses five lakh road accidents every year, resulting in 1.80 lakh deaths.He added that most of those killed in road accidents are between 18 and 36 years of age.“This is a very problematic situation for the country. At any cost, these numbers have to be reduced,” he said, stressing that assessing the complete value chain of a vehicle would be an important part of addressing the problem.“We are going to evaluate the entire value chain of the crash, and in that, the new technologies and those developed by Indian startups we will use them,” the minister said.