Kerala Motor Vehicles Department

Transport commissionerate

The Kerala MVD functions under the provisions of Section 213 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. The headquarters of the Motor Vehicles Department, known as the Transport Commissionerate, is situated in Thiruvananthapuram.

The Motor Vehicles Department is headed by the Transport Commissioner, typically an IPS officer of the rank of Additional Director General of Police (ADGP). The current Transport Commissioner is CH Nagaraju IPS. The Transport Commissioner is assisted by the Additional Transport Commissioner, Joint Transport Commissioners and Deputy Transport Commissioners.^[6] At the Head Office, one Additional Transport Commissioner, two Joint Transport Commissioners, one Senior Deputy Transport Commissioners, one Assistant Transport Commissioner, and other ministerial and administrative officials assist the Transport Commissioner.

Zonal offices

There are four zonal offices headed by Deputy Transport Commissioners (Dy TCs).

Regional Transport Offices (RTOs)

The MVD has two functional wings: Enforcement Wing and Administration Wing.

There are 19 Regional Transport Offices (RTOs) responsible for transport administration, including vehicle registration, issuance of driving licences, and other vehicle- and licence-related services. It includes two Special RTOs located at Thiruvananthapuram—one for the nationalised sector (KSRTC vehicle registration) and another for government vehicles (KL-90).^[8][9]

Enforcement Regional Transport Offices

Kerala has 14 Enforcement Regional Transport Offices (RTOs), one in each district, responsible for road safety enforcement and the implementation of motor vehicle laws within their respective jurisdictions.^[10][11][12] The MVD Enforcement Wing comprises 14 RTOs, 65 Motor Vehicle Inspectors and 187 Assistant Motor Vehicles Inspectors.^[13]

Sub Regional Transport Offices

Sub-regional Transport Offices are headed by joint regional transport officers (JRTOs). There are 68 SRTO offices across the state.

Technological Advancements: AI Cameras (2023-Present)

In 2023, the Kerala Motor Vehicles Department (MVD) became the first transport department in India to implement a large-scale Artificial Intelligence (AI) camera system for traffic violation detection and road safety enforcement. This initiative, known as the "Safe Kerala" scheme, involved the installation of 726 cameras across the state. The AI cameras detect violations such as not wearing helmets and seat belts, overspeeding, careless driving, three people travelling on a two-wheeler among others.

Out of the total cameras, 692 were designated for automated fine imposition. During a trial run period, these cameras successfully identified a significant number of traffic violations. MVD officials reported capturing around 4.5 lakh violations, with some cameras detecting as many as 2,500 offenses daily. Following the official launch in April 2023, the number of violations captured by the cameras reportedly dropped to around 2 lakh per day, suggesting a positive impact on driver behavior.^{[15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23]}