With the opening of the doors of the Gangotri and Yamunotri shrines during the Chardham Yatra, which begins on April 19, not only pilgrims’ vehicles but also tourist vehicles visiting the Garhwal division will be required to obtain green cards.
Previously, the requirement for green cards was only for commercial vehicles carrying pilgrims. However, since last year, the government has also implemented the requirement for green cards to be issued by the Transport Department for vehicles of tourists visiting tourist destinations like Kanatal, Kedarkantha, Chopta, Deoria Tal, Panwalikantha, Harshil, Satopanth, and Valley of Flowers for trekking, camping, and other adventure tourism.
RTO (Administration), Dehradun, Sandeep Saini, stated that this step has been taken to prevent accidents and gather complete vehicle information.
It should be noted that on June 15, 2024, during the Chardham Yatra, a tempo traveller carrying tourists from Delhi to Chopta lost control and fell into the Alaknanda River on the Rishikesh-Badrinath Highway, killing 16 passengers. An investigation revealed that the tourists had left Delhi late at night, and the driver was driving continuously.
Due to the lack of a green card requirement for tourist vehicles, the fitness of these vehicles was not checked, nor was the Transport Department aware of the drivers’ experience driving on mountain routes. This poses a risk of accidents. Therefore, last year, the Transport Department made it mandatory for tourist vehicles to obtain green cards.
Sandeep Saini, Nodal Officer and RTO (Administration) for the Chardham Yatra, stated that the biggest benefit of this system was that the vehicle’s fitness was checked before embarking on the mountain route, and the Transport Department also had access to information about the driver’s experience on mountain routes.
Since the vehicle must be brought to the transport office to obtain a Green Card, this allows the driver to rest briefly during the long journey. The RTO stated that this requirement applies to tourist vehicles with a passenger capacity of 13 or more, and their Green Cards will be valid for 15 days.
Green Trip Cards to be issued in the last week of March
Green Cards will be issued at all Transport Department offices starting in the last week of March for commercial vehicles travelling on the Chardham Yatra. For this, vehicles will be required to undergo a fitness test. Commercial vehicles will receive a Green Card only after passing this test.
There is no requirement for a Green Trip Card for private vehicles. Only after passing all the tests will the commercial vehicle owner be granted a Green Card by applying on the website greencard.uk.gov.in.
After this card is issued, the vehicle owner must obtain a Trip Card for each trip. The Trip Card contains complete information, including the passengers’ names and addresses, their mobile numbers, the driver’s name and address, and the date of travel. This will also be available online from the link given on the Transport Department’s website, greencard.uk.gov.in.
