MNS supporters have a penchant for the number ‘9’ while NCP supporters generally vie for ‘1010’ when it is time to register their new vehicles with the Regional Transport Office (RTO). The RTO has made Rs 5 crore in just the last six months by selling some choice numbers.u00a0Whatever the reason behind the number preferences, the demand for certain coveted numbers is helping the RTO get richer by the day and now its officials are looking forward to crossing the Rs 10 crore mark by the end of the financial year.

According to the Motor Vehicles Act, the price to be paid for a choice number for a two-wheeler starts from Rs 2,000 and goes up to Rs 25,000. In case of four-wheelers, the price for a preferred number can go up to Rs 3 lakh for rare combinations. u00a0In the last six months, a total of 7,286 vehicles, including two- and four-wheelers, were granted numbers of their owners’ choice. u00a0Statistical data provided by the RTO reveals that in the last three years, income from the sale of choice numbers has been increasing by 30 to 40 per cent every year.