The government has decided to extend the validity of driving licenses that expired on February 1 in the wake of the coronavirus crisis. The expired licenses will now be valid until June 30, 2020.

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has issued an advisory to states and union territories, asking them to consider documents like driving licenses, permits and registration papers which expired on February 1 this year to be valid till June 30 under the Motor Vehicle Rules.

The move comes in the wake of the 3-week Covid-19 lockdown to ensure that people don’t experience any inconvenience due to the closure of the transport offices. The decision is also to help essential service providers carry out their operations during and after the lockdown without any hassle.

Road transport and highways ministry on Tuesday extended till 30 June the validity of crucial documents, including driving licences, permits, and vehicle registration, that expired 1 February but could not be renewed due to the nationwide lockdown.

“Enforcement authorities are advised to treat such documents valid till June 30, 2020,” the ministry said in an advisory to principal secretaries and transport commissioners of all states and union territories.

The step was taken to mitigate the hardships of people in renewing the validity of crucial vehicle documents due to the three-week nationwide lockdown that led to the closure of government transport offices.

These documents include fitness, all types of permits, driving licence, registration or any other crucial document, the ministry said in the advisory.

The ministry asked all states to implement the advisory in “letter and spirit” and urged them to ensure that people, transporters and organisations rendering essential services do not get harassed and face difficulties.

To break the chain of the contagion due to covid-19 pandemic, Prime Minister Narendra last week imposed a 21-day nationwide lockdown, beginning March 25, that included a ban on all modes of transportation.

India has reported over 1,200 Covid-19 cases and more than 30 deaths so far. 100 people have recovered from the infection. On Tuesday, the country entered the seventh day of the 3-week Covid-19 lockdown.

The coronavirus pandemic has affected nearly 700,000 people across the globe. More than 30,000 people worldwide have been killed by the deadly contagion which started last year from China’s Wuhan.

Besides China, the United States, Italy, Spain, France and Iran are some of the worst-hit nations by the Covid-19 crisis.