India, Feb. 14 -- Selling a vehicle involves two distinct steps. The first is the physical transaction, where the keys are handed over, and payment is received. The second, and more complex step, is the legal transfer of the Registration Certificate (RC). While the first part can happen in minutes, the second part is governed by the Regional Transport Office (RTO) and can take weeks or even months. This delay is often misunderstood as a failure of the intermediaries involved, but it is actually a result of systemic complexities within the Indian transport ecosystem.

A smooth transfer begins with the seller. The RTO requires a precise set of documents to initiate a change in ownership. If these documents are incomplete or inaccurate, the ...