Security Printing Center starts printing driving licences
KATHMANDU: The government has started printing driving licences from its own machines. The Security Printing Center (SPC) under the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MoCIT) began printing licences today.
Minister for Communications and Information Technology Jagadish Kharel inaugurated printing from the machine at the centre in Banepa, Kavrepalanchok district. Kharel said the process began after essential arrangements were made despite legal complications and various difficulties.
"The machines under the Security Printing Center were lying idle for years. The machines and spare parts were all dusty. The place itself had become like a ruin. We have started printing after dusting them off," he said.
Minister Kharel said the SPC's machines can print national identity cards, passports, land ownership certificates, various stickers and postal stamps, among other items. He added that there is a need to print 2.8 million driving licences.
The printing of licences, passports, national ID cards and other documents was previously outsourced to foreign companies. Kharel said printing has restarted after policy improvements addressed a situation where printing was not being done despite existing infrastructure and resources.
Devraj Dhungana, executive director of the SPC, said printing began after resolving legal complications and technical complexities. Work has commenced under an agreement to print 1.2 million copies in the first phase. The SPC said it will initially print 500 licences daily and will increase output gradually.
Dhungana said citizenship certificates, excise stickers, postal stamps, land ownership certificates and visa stickers can also be printed from today. The SPC has had an investment of approximately Rs 3 billion to date.
