Only urgent applications for renewal of licence and No Objection Certificates will be entertained at regional transport offices “till further orders”, the state government has said in a directive issued on Wednesday.

The exercise to prevent the spread of the coronavirus began on Thursday when many, who entered after cleaning their hands with sanitiser made available at the entrance to transport offices in Kasba, Salt Lake and Alipore, were asked to go back as their application was not urgent in nature and would not be processed.

The state government has been repeatedly appealing to all to stay away from mass gatherings. The footfall at regional transport offices is among the highest recorded by government offices, senior officials at Nabanna said.

The public vehicles department at Beltala in Bhowanipore, the largest of all such offices in the city, attracts the highest footfall with over 2,000 people turning up through the day for various activities, including applications for new driving licence or renewal, submission of fees or appearing for fitness tests or online tests for learner’s licence.

Other transport offices at Alipore, Kasba, Behala and Salt Lake record around 1,000 to 2,000 visitors for transferring ownership of vehicles or duplicate registration certificates.

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“Some of those turned up at the offices on Thursday and queued up to pay road taxes or other vehicle-related taxes but we told them it can wait. There should be no queues,” a transport department official said. “There were a few who had to get NOCs because they were moving out of the city. We immediately addressed their issues.”

“A learner’s licence is valid for six months. If someone’s licence is expiring within next few days, he is welcome. Similarly, if someone’s driving licence is expiring shortly, he can always turn up at the office. But if it’s several months away, please stay away,” said the official.

March 31 being the deadline for registering BS-IV vehicles, most transport department offices have been witnessing a mad rush.

The transport department has, however, made it clear that in case of BS-IV vehicles that require mandatory production of vehicles for inspection, the exercise will no longer required. “This is being done to reduce unnecessary footfall at the offices,” the official said.