Kerala makes RC–mobile number linking mandatory: No pollution certificate without it

Kozhikode: You must link your mobile number with the RC; otherwise, a pollution certificate will not be issued. The OTP received on the mobile number must be entered on the website. Only then will the pollution testing certificate be available from the Parivahan website. As part of the introduction of the new OTP system, a trial run was conducted on Sunday from 4 pm to 7 pm.

If a vehicle’s Registration Certificate is not linked to the mobile number, a pollution testing certificate will no longer be issued. Pollution testing centres have received instructions regarding this from the National Informatics Centre (NIC). The OTP system came into effect on Monday from 3 pm.

The vehicle owner’s mobile number must be linked with the RC through Parivahan. Currently, to obtain a pollution test certificate, any mobile number can be given at the testing centre. However, with the new system, based on the linked mobile number alone, the certificate will be issued.

Beyond that, if fines are imposed on vehicles on Monday, notifications will reach the linked mobile number, enabling the owners to verify them.

The Motor Vehicles Department has found that some vehicles brought in from other states and some older vehicles still do not have their RC linked with a mobile number.

Kerala has 2,850 pollution testing centres. Of these, 48 centres were blocked because they provided fake mobile numbers while conducting pollution tests. As a result, the owners of many vehicles that came for testing could not obtain certificates since their mobile numbers were not linked. Two days were allowed from Sunday onwards to link mobile numbers. However, urgent instructions were issued to make vehicle information available.

Based on Central Government directions, the new OTP system was implemented on Monday afternoon, said Pradeep Singh, director, NIC Kerala. Therefore, vehicle owners who have not linked their mobile number will not receive a pollution certificate from Tuesday onwards. He added that the system has already been implemented in many other states and has been completely successful there.