Delhi car no. 0001 auctioned for Rs 23 lakh

NEW DELHI: The price of vanity cannot be quantified, but there was an indication of sorts when the auction of the coveted 0001 vehicle licence plate attracted a bid of Rs 23.4 lakh in March. The amount could have bought two premium hatchbacks or a well-equipped SUV, but the desire to flaunt a status symbol seems to have overcome all economic considerations.
Data from Delhi govt's transport department showed that 0001 received the astounding bid in March, the highest in all monthly auctions this year till June. The buyer's details weren't shared to protect the individual's privacy. 0009 was second on the list, selling for Rs 11 lakh in June, while 0007 didn't do too badly, fetching Rs 10.8 lakh in the Jan auction.
Ego trip: Rs 18L between 0001 & 0002
The Rs 23.4-lakh bid significantly surpassed the base price of Rs 5 lakh for the number, highlighting the immense value placed on this particular series of digits, perhaps because of its increasing rarity with the transport department claiming that it was often snatched up by politicians, ministers and top bureaucrats. A transport official explained that 0001 was the most sought after number in e-auctions and among politicians. It was a status symbol that gave its owner indisputable bragging rights and a sense of being numero uno. In a similar way, 0007 too sees high bidding because it has become fashionable with its association with superspy James Bond and cricket icon Mahendra Singh Dhoni as well. The department secured Rs 5.1 lakh for 0002 in January auction.
The minimum reserve price is Rs 3 lakh for numbers 0002 to 0009, Rs 2 lakh for 0010 to 0099, 0786, 1000, 1111, 7777 and 9999, Rs 1 lakh for numbers such as 0100, 0111, 0300, 0333, etc. Other preferred numbers cost around Rs 25,000. 0786 is considered auspicious in the Muslim community.

E-auctions are held every first week of the month for registration numbers with a reserve price of Rs 1 lakh and above and every week for other registration numbers. "A registration number not included in the auction category but sought by a person by jumping the chronological order of numbers in a series has a base price of Rs 25,000," the official said.
On why there is this increasing craze for distinctive numbers, an official who has been part of some of these auctions said status value, numerology, superstitious beliefs, date of birth and numbers considered lucky were reasons why people were willing to pay for them. He also pointed out that people with several cars often desired to stick to a specific pattern for all their vehicles.
The online e-auctioning of coveted registration numbers was started in 2014. It is conducted by Delhi Transport Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited on behalf of the transport department. Ministers, Supreme Court judges, Chief Election Commissioner, Lok Sabha Speaker, MPs, MLAs and senior bureaucrats, among others, are also entitled to get these numbers.
Officials said that though there has always been a craze for fancy numbers, it had never reached such levels before the Covid pandemic. In June 2017, a Delhi-based hospitality firm created a record when it paid Rs 16 lakh for the 0001 number plate. The record prior to that was Rs 12.5 lakh, which was bid for in Sept 2014, again for 0001.