If you are planning on adding a lorry to your car collection with the dream of either driving it to the farm or construction site one day, you should also be planning on acquiring another class of driving permit for your dream to come to life

On any permit is the classification which means you might have money to buy a Tata truck but you are not allowed to drive it unless you have the required class of permit to do so.

The permit classifies that for one to qualify for any permit, they have to be 18 years and older and for one to get permits above Class B, it is imperative that a driver is older and has gained experience.

• According to the law, Group A is given to motorcycles, Group B to allow one drive motorcars and dual-purpose motor vehicles, Group CM—medium goods motor vehicles and heavy tractors and Group CH—heavy goods vehicles.

• Group DL allows one to drive light omnibuses, Group DM to drive medium omnibuses, Group DH for heavy omnibuses, Group E for a combination of vehicles, Group F for pedestrian-controlled vehicles, Group G for engineering plant vehicles and Group I for hover vehicles.

• An applicant for a Group E or G driving permit can, before being granted the driving permit, hold a driving permit in Group B, CM, CH, DL, DM or DH which equates to maximum permissible weight or the maximum permissible number of passengers to the combination of vehicles or the engineering plant which the applicant proposes to drive.

• Further a driving permit for Group B, CM, CH, DL, DM or DH permits a person to drive a combination of motor vehicles if the permissible maximum weight of the drawn motor vehicle does not exceed seven hundred and fifty kilogrammes or the un-laden weight of the drawing motor vehicle, whichever is the less.

• Most drivers acquire a high-class driving permit over the years after acquiring experience and at the time they are given a job in a company that has such vehicles.

Personally when I was hired, part of my job was to drive tractors and I needed to have a permit to drive such vehicles. It is therefore important for one to have a permit because it is a document that shows or proves that one is qualified to drive a given vehicle.

Jotham Wabwire (Driving school Instructor)