Truck driver supply with the licence, endorsements and duty hours all checked.
A loaded truck standing at your dock because the driver did not report is expensive; a loaded truck moving with the wrong licence class is worse. Truck driver supply carries more risk per hire than most blue-collar roles. Godstone Consultech screens for licence class and endorsements, route familiarity and duty-hour discipline, employs every worker on our own payroll, and keeps PF, ESI and contract-labour records with us — so the person on your floor is documented, replaceable and accountable from day one.
Vehicle types, routes and duty pattern are enough to price the contract.
Long haul, distribution and in-plant movement.
Different runs need different drivers. Long-haul trailer work, city distribution and in-plant shunting are screened separately for licence class, route familiarity and physical fitness.
- ✓Long-haul trailer and container movement
- ✓City distribution and multi-drop runs
- ✓In-plant shunting and yard movement
- ✓Tanker and specialised cargo runs where licensed
- ✓Pre-trip inspection and trip-sheet discipline
Where transport plans break down
Not in routing software. In driver availability, fatigue and licence validity.
A driver is deployed on a trailer with an HMV licence that lapsed two months ago, and nobody checked because the truck needed to leave.
A detained vehicle, a rejected insurance claim, a customer penalty for a late delivery, and in a serious incident an enquiry that asks exactly who verified the licence.
Licence and endorsement verification on file with expiry tracking, duty and rest-hour rosters, and standby cover that aims to fill an absence within 48 hours.
Get a rate card →
Screening, deployment and compliance
Move the slider for an indicative monthly bill at an illustrative 12% service markup (an assumption, not our rate card). Firm rates follow the state minimum wage for the category and the shift pattern.
What clears before the worker reaches your gate.
Match the driver to the run, not just the licence
A driver who is excellent on city distribution can be a liability on a 1,500 km trailer run. We screen for the run type you operate:
| Run type | Vehicle | What the driver needs |
|---|---|---|
| Long-haul line haul | Multi-axle trucks and tractor-trailers | Heavy transport licence, coupling and reversing skill, inter-State route and document familiarity, fatigue discipline |
| Regional and feeder | Medium and heavy trucks | Heavy transport licence, loading-point discipline, hub turnaround |
| City distribution | Goods vehicles above 7,500 kg | Transport licence, city no-entry timings, tight-dock reversing |
| Tanker and hazardous cargo | Fuel, chemical and gas tankers | Hazardous-goods endorsement (CMVR Rule 9), TREM card, spill and fire response |
| Yard and plant shunting | Tractors, trailers and tippers inside premises | Valid licence for the class, yard speed and pedestrian rules |
Vans and goods carriers up to 7,500 kg gross weight can be driven on an LMV licence — see driver staffing services. Reefer and cold-store roles: cold chain staffing.
How a truck driver is verified and tested
A heavy-vehicle licence is necessary, not sufficient. Every driver clears each step before the first trip, with the record on file for your insurer.
| Check | How it is done |
|---|---|
| Licence class and endorsements | Checked online on the Parivahan Sarathi service; hazardous-goods endorsement where needed; expiry tracked |
| Age and medical | At least 20 for a transport vehicle; Form 1A medical certificate; eyesight and substance screening |
| Practical test | Loaded-vehicle test: reversing to a dock, gradient start, coupling and decoupling for trailers |
| Route familiarity | Corridor knowledge, State border and toll procedures, safe halt points |
| History | Pending e-challans, previous-employer reference, address and police verification |
Long-haul duty rules and how we roster them
Motor transport workers' hours moved into the OSH Code 2020 when it replaced the Motor Transport Workers Act 1961. What that means on the road:
What counts as working time
Driving time plus subsidiary work — loading supervision, paperwork, garaging and repairs — and short waits at terminals.
Overtime and weekly rest
Beyond eight hours is overtime, by consent, at twice the wage rate. The weekly holiday can be deferred on a run but never beyond ten consecutive days.
Fatigue controls
Planned rest halts, no back-to-back night runs without rest, and a second driver on long non-stop runs where you agree the cost.
What you receive
- →Duty roster per vehicle and run
- →Trip sheet and fuel log discipline
- →Overtime shown as its own line
- →Incident and challan escalation within the day
Truck driver minimum wages and market pay, 2026
Heavy-vehicle drivers are usually placed in the skilled or highly skilled grade. Allowances often matter more to retention than the base wage. Indicative figures:
| State / category | Minimum wage or pay | Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Haryana — skilled / highly skilled | ₹18,500.81 / ₹19,425.85 a month | 1 Apr 2026 | Grade depends on the notification's schedule |
| Tamil Nadu — driver (shops & commercial establishments) | ₹14,120 a month (Zone A) | 1 Apr 2026 | Transport schedules may carry their own rates |
| Market pay — truck driver (Indeed India) | Average ₹19,838; range ₹8,086–₹50,106 | 85 reports, May 2026 | Excludes most trip allowances |
Sources: Haryana revision of 1 Apr 2026; Tamil Nadu notification of 18 Feb 2026; Indeed India salary data. Put the outstation (bhatta) allowance, trip incentive and night allowance in writing — unclear allowances are a common reason drivers leave mid-contract.
SLAs and what the fleet owner provides
Numbers are agreed per corridor and written into the contract.
Service levels we propose
- ✓Standby cover on the corridor where available
- ✓We aim to replace a driver within 48 hours
- ✓No driver on a run with a lapsed licence or endorsement
- ✓Daily attendance and trip reporting
- ✓Monthly pack: wage proof, PF and ESI challans
What the fleet owner provides
- ✓A roadworthy vehicle with valid RC, insurance, PUC, fitness and permit
- ✓FASTag, fuel card and a trip-advance policy
- ✓GPS tracking and a 24-hour control contact
- ✓Rest facilities at hubs and loading points
- ✓Consignment papers and the e-way bill before departure
Do you verify HMV licences and endorsements?+
Yes. Licence class, validity and endorsement history are verified before deployment, expiry dates are tracked, and the record is kept on file for your audits and insurance requirements.
Are drivers tested before deployment?+
Yes. A practical driving test on your vehicle category, plus medical fitness, eyesight and substance screening, and a route-familiarity check for the runs the driver will operate.
How are duty and rest hours managed?+
Under the OSH Code 2020, a driver's working hours include driving time, loading supervision, paperwork and short waits at terminals — capped at eight a day, with overtime only by consent at twice the wage rate, and a weekly holiday that can be deferred but never beyond ten consecutive days. We roster relievers and rest halts to those rules, because fatigue is a major risk on long runs.
What happens if a driver does not report?+
A standby driver covers the run where one is available on the corridor, and we aim to deploy a permanent replacement within 48 hours, with attendance reported daily.
How is truck driver staffing priced?+
On the State minimum wage for the driver's grade — heavy-vehicle drivers are usually skilled or highly skilled — plus employer PF and ESI, bonus, leave and gratuity provision, plus the service fee agreed in the contract. Outstation (bhatta) allowance, trip incentives, night allowance and overtime are billed at actuals.
Do tanker drivers need a hazardous-goods endorsement?+
Yes. Rule 9 of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules requires the driver of a vehicle carrying dangerous or hazardous goods to be able to read and write, and to have completed the prescribed hazardous-goods training, recorded on the licence. The driver must also carry the Transport Emergency (TREM) card for the load.
What documents must a truck driver carry?+
A valid licence for the vehicle class, the vehicle's RC, insurance, pollution certificate, fitness certificate and permit, plus the consignment papers — lorry receipt, invoice or delivery challan, and the GST e-way bill where the consignment requires one. Hazardous loads add the TREM card.
Trucks waiting on drivers?
Send the role, headcount and site city. We aim to send an itemised rate card and deployment date within one working day.