ISLAMABAD: The capital administration has decided to reintroduce the QR registration of digital ride-hailing services, a project that had previously been shelved.

According to the capital administration officials, all vehicles and motorcycles operating under digital ride services will now be required to register with the administration, declaring that strict action will be taken against those operating without registration.

The move has come in the wake of the suicide attack at the Tarlai imambargah last Friday in which 38 worshippers had lost their lives.

The administration has already started the registration process from February 10 under which the data of all drivers and vehicles is being collected.

The capital police had launched this project in April last year, directing ride-hailing companies to affix QR codes costing Rs200 per day on their vehicles.

Soon after the decision, representatives of cab companies protested over it, claiming they were required to obtain the QR codes daily from an authorised vendor and paste them on their vehicles. They were also instructed to scan the code for every passenger and pay Rs5 per ride on the passenger’s behalf.

The police also raided some of the offices of the online ride services in Islamabad and temporarily sealed them over non-compliance with newly introduced “data security protocols.” However, later the authorities shelved the project without making any formal announcement.

In a statement on Thursday, the capital administration said the newly developed administrative dashboard was fully functional and 313 drivers had already registered so far.

The statement quoted the deputy commissioner, Islamabad, as saying that the objective of the registration drive is to ensure safer travel facilities for residents of the capital.

He also warned that legal action will be taken against unregistered drivers.

It may be recalled that after a suicide attack outside the Judicial Complex in November, last year, the capital administration had made m-tags mandatory for vehicles entering Islamabad.

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi had announced that no vehicle would be allowed into Islamabad without e-tag by the end of November. Later, the deadline was extended and the process of vehicles registration to get m-tag is still going on.

The e-tag project was first time introduced in the capital in 2013 on the directives of the then interior minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan to facilitate the commuters and to avoid long queues at the toll plaza for paying tax as well as for checking.

Later in 2017, the authorities concerned tested Radio Frequency Identification Devices and installed scanners at the entry points and Red Zone.

Published in Dawn, February 13th, 2026