In May 2026, Road Transport and Highways Secretary V Umashankar said the government is exploring a rating system for drivers of commercial vehicles such as trucks, to rank their skills and driving behaviour history, as Business Standard reported. The idea is that logistics operators could engage drivers based on factors such as past challan history, years holding a licence and insurance record. No final decision had been announced at the time.
Even before any rating exists, the direction is clear: driver quality is moving from gut feeling to data.
What a rating could include
Based on what has been discussed, a rating would likely weigh:
- Challan history, which now also affects licences under the amended rule on repeat offences.
- Experience, measured by years holding a licence.
- Insurance and claims history.
- Possibly, assessed skill, from structured testing.
Why operators should prepare now
- Hiring: good drivers with strong records will be easier to identify, and in demand.
- Insurance: safe-driver records are already starting to influence premiums.
- Contracts: shippers may start asking for rated drivers on sensitive loads.
How to get ahead
- Keep your own driver records now: challans, incidents, near-misses, training completed.
- Assess skill objectively, not just by years of experience. An experienced driver can still have bad habits.
- Train against the gaps each assessment shows, and re-assess afterwards.
- Reward improvement, so drivers see a benefit in a good record.
Where simulator assessment fits
A simulator gives every driver the same test in the same conditions, which makes scores comparable across drivers, depots and time. Instructors can add hazards and faults that are impossible to stage safely on a real road, and every session is logged.
Our VRMMDS simulator covers four light and four heavy vehicle types across seven terrains, with rain, fog, night, instructor fault injection and automated scored reports. It was built for the Indian Army and is in operational use across 15+ states.
Building a driver assessment programme? See driver training for fleets or request a demonstration.