Siliguri, Feb. 26: Hundreds of vehicle owners and transporters swarmed the Treasury Building at Court More here as the extension counter of the regional transport authority (RTA) of Darjeeling began functioning in Siliguri today.

Sources said the counter had received around Rs 3 lakh on the first day.

The office, opened on the basis of a notification issued by Sumantra Choudhury, the additional chief secretary of the state transport department, on February 16, was flooded with people standing in queue to pay taxes, obtain new certificates of fitness for their vehicles and renewal of other documents.

Work at the RTA office in Darjeeling had halted on July 7 last year following a movement of the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha to stop revenue collection in government offices.

The hill office, however, started functioning from February 23 this year following the withdrawal of the non-cooperation movement by the outfit.

“No sooner had the extension counter opened here this morning, transporters and vehicle owners started queuing up with application forms,” said Rajen Sundas, the additional regional transport officer of Siliguri.

The shutdown of the district RTA office had put vehicle owners in a spot.

Mrinal Kanti Sarkar filed a suit in Calcutta High Court, informing it about the problems the transporters were facing.

On February 11, Justice Jayanta Kumar Biswas directed the state government to open an additional counter of the RTA office of Darjeeling in Siliguri within a fortnight.