If you’re planning to obtain a driving license at the Automated Driving Test Center under the Jalandhar Regional Transport Office (RTO), be prepared to endure hours of hard work and a sloppy system. The situation here is deteriorating day by day, and the public’s patience is wearing thin due to the officials’ lax oversight. The scene at the center today was enough to reveal the reality of bureaucracy. Hundreds of people arrived at the center to obtain learning licenses, driving licenses, international licenses, and duplicate licenses, with long queues stretching outside. The situation was so dire that only one female employee was present inside to provide services. Imagine the RTO entrusting the entire office to a single employee. The work was incredibly slow due to the presence of a single employee, resulting in queues so long that people became exhausted standing in the sun. Despite waiting for hours in the scorching heat, their turn never came. People standing outside were asking, “Are we here to get our license or to take our exam?” This is an open test of public tolerance.
Staff shortages, server downtime, and malfunctioning cameras are a daily excuse.
The biggest problem at the RTO office is that server downtime and camera failure are commonplace. Sometimes software malfunctions, and sometimes a shortage of staff paralyzes the entire system. Officials often shirk responsibility by citing staff shortages, leaving the public with hours of waiting and unnecessary hassles.
When will the staff shortage be resolved?
Applicants reported that staff shortages are not a new issue. Often, staff numbers are so low that work grinds to a halt. But surprisingly, instead of addressing this shortage, officials simply use “makeshift” tactics. The question arises: when the state government talks about e-governance and automation, why isn’t the plight of such offices being addressed?
Public anger exposes the system
Today, people standing outside the center expressed their anger. One applicant, Ratnesh, said that while the government claims to provide doorstep services, they have talked a lot about online appointments and automated systems, but the reality is that everything here is left to God’s mercy. Another applicant, Gautam, said that everyone who comes here wastes their entire day. And because of these circumstances, people are forced to line the pockets of brokers and middlemen.
