ISLAMABAD: Zaman Research Centre at the Quaid-i-Azam University (QAU) is designing a smart licensing model for the federal capital.

Prof Dr Mohammad Zaman, founding chairman of School of Sociology, said it was a contribution of smart technologies in road safety that might reduce road crashes and increase smart surveillance, says a press release.

The salient features of this model is verification of the driving licence, identification of vehicle ownership, on-spot detection of traffic violations and immediate notification of penalty.

The licence can be integrated with Nadra, Federal Board of Revenue and Safe City.

Chairman of Computer Science Department, QAU, Dr Rabeeh Abbasi is supervising the development of this application.

Prof Zaman believes this licensing would reduce road crashes significantly and save precious lives.

At present, Prof Zaman is leading a consortium of researchers from QAU, International Islamic University Islamabad (IIUI), Nust, Lums and Ibadat University.

The team is determined to put in place a comprehensive system to ensure road safety in Islamabad.

The system includes mass transit, smart parking, licensing and road management.

It is part of a mega project by the HEC to offer solutions. The problem, Prof Zaman, says is not resources. “Resources are there.

The problem is the bureaucratic bottlenecks that are a hurdle in putting these resources in an order so that their optimal use is possible.”

Published in Dawn, November 30th, 2023