State roads see 12.5% jump in vehicle population

CHENNAI: The population of vehicles in Tamil Nadu, including cars, two wheelers, autos, taxis and buses have grown by 12.50 per cent during 2011-12.Moving the Demand for grant to his department in the State Assembly on Monday, Transport Minister V Senthil Balaji said the total number of vehicles in the State as on March 31, 2012 was 153.69 lakhs of which the number of non-transport vehicles used for personal uses like cars and motor bikes is 143.68 lakh and the number of transport vehicles is 10.01 lakh.Pointing out that a revenue target of Rs 4,141 crore has been fixed for the financial year 2012-13, he said the total revenue earned by the department in 2011-12 was Rs 3163.63 crore by way of tax and fee.Stating that the infrastructure for the department would be improved, Senthil Balaji said that zonal offices in Villupuram, Salem, Erode and Thanjavur will function from own buildings shortly. “Scientifically designed testing tracks have been established in 31 Regional Transport Offices (RTOs) and 5 unit offices,” he noted.The data related to vehicles and revenue collection can be accessed at http://vahan.nic.in and information linked to the driving licences can be found at http://sarathi.nic.in from the National Register, he said.