The Department of Transport Management (DoTM) has extended the deadline for installing embossed number plates by three years, a decision expected to cost the department around Rs 1.5 billion.
The new deadline has been set for mid-December 2028 after the project suffered delays due to slow progress and damage caused during the Gen Z-led protests. During the unrest in September last year, a fire destroyed the DoTM’s main building, storage facilities, and printing equipment, rendering more than 850,000 embossed number plates unusable.
Of the damaged plates, around 680,000 had already been received by the department, while the remaining stock was still with the contractor. The project is being implemented by Decatur–Tiger IT, a joint American–Bangladeshi company. After prolonged negotiations, the DoTM agreed to absorb the loss for the plates already delivered, while the contractor will continue installing the remaining plates under the revised timeline.
Officials said the extension was unavoidable due to contractual provisions requiring payment of up to 95 percent of costs even if installation targets are missed, provided delays are caused by administrative hurdles.
Signed in 2016, the project aimed to install embossed plates on 2.5 million vehicles within five years. However, progress has remained sluggish, with fewer than 100,000 vehicles fitted so far despite two previous deadline extensions. The contract also required the construction of 10 RFID gates, but only two have been completed to date, with little progress on the others.
