A practical guide to road position, lane discipline, overtaking, junctions, vulnerable road users and safe decision-making, written for Indian roads.
16 sections and 35 rules, arranged in the order you use these skills on the road. Read from the start, or go straight to what you need.
Where your vehicle should be on the road, keeping left, choosing lanes, merging and changing lanes.
2 rulesMirrors, blind spots, signalling, moving off and communicating clearly with other road users.
2 rulesLeft turns, right turns, U-turns, intersections, priority and traffic controls.
3 rulesPedestrians, cyclists, motorcycles, children, older people and persons with disabilities.
7 rulesLane discipline, merging, overtaking, breakdowns and high-speed road safety.
2 rulesSharing the road with trucks, buses and tractors, and driving large vehicles safely and legally.
1 ruleEmergency vehicles, breakdowns, crashes and what to do after an incident.
2 rulesDefensive driving, courtesy, attention, distraction and responsible decision-making.
2 rulesKeeping your vehicle roadworthy and legal: tyres, brakes, lights, plates, insurance, pollution certificates and modifications.
4 rulesLearner licences, L-plates, supervision, the driving test, licence classes and becoming a safe new driver.
3 rulesLearning to Drive & Licences
Check each country's licence rules, get an International Driving Permit if needed and carry it with your Indian licence, learn the local laws, and take extra care when traffic keeps to the right. Visitors to India need an IDP and their home licence.
Learning to Drive & Licences
Indian law recognises adapted vehicles and licences for drivers with disabilities. Get a medical assessment, fit approved adaptations with RTO approval, train with a suitable instructor and take the test in the adapted vehicle.
Difficult Conditions
Use a low gear and engine braking downhill, never coast, keep left on every bend, give long vehicles room on hairpins, overtake only with a clear view, and remember that on narrow mountain roads the vehicle going downhill gives way.
Emergencies & Incidents
After the scene is safe: record evidence, report to the police when anyone is hurt, tell your insurer immediately, keep every document, and file any injury or death claim at the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal as early as possible.
Your Vehicle & Documents
Stay within your vehicle's load limits, put heavy items low, secure everything, never let a load stick out or hide your plate and lights, and tow only with a short, visible rope or bar at 25 km/h with ON TOW signs and hazard lights.
Highways & Expressways
Slow down early at toll plazas, pick your lane in time, keep a working FASTag fixed on the windscreen, and merge carefully afterwards. At police checks, stop safely, show your documents (paper or DigiLocker), and pay fines only through an official e-challan.
Thirty random questions from every part of this guide, to the standard of the UK and New Zealand theory tests. Free, no sign-up, with every answer explained.
Every rule starts with what Indian law requires. Driving manuals from the UK, Australia, New Zealand and other countries then help explain hazards and good technique. They never override Indian law, and anything that is our advice rather than law is labelled as such.