Fancy car number 0001 sold for Rs 23 lakh | Why the craze? Check other nos. in hot demand

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The auction of the most sought after car license plate number 0001 attracted a bid of Rs 23.4 lakh in March. Just imagine what this amount could buy you -- one premium SUV!

Delhi transport department's data showed that 0001 received the bid in March, the highest in all monthly auctions this year till June. Number 0009 was second on the list, selling for Rs 11 lakh in June, while 0007 did well too, because of its association with James Bond and MS Dhoni (jersey no. 7).

The Rs 23.4-lakh bid significantly surpassed the base price of Rs 5 lakh for the number, according to a report published in The Times of India. Number 0001 was the most sought after number in e-auctions.

By selling number 0007 the transport 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, according to the TOI report. Other preferred numbers cost around Rs 25,000. Number 0786 is considered auspicious in the Muslim community.

The 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, the report said.

“A registration number not included in the auction catego ry 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.

The online e-auctioning of VIP numbers was started in 2014. Ministers, Supreme Court judges, Chief Election Commissioner, Lok Sabha Speaker, MPs, MLAs and senior bureaucrats, among others, are also entitled to get these numbers.

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, the TOI report said.

Why this craze for fancy numbers

• One reason is the rarity of these numbers with the transport department.
• Status value, numerology, superstitious beliefs, date of birth and numbers considered lucky are also the reasons why people were willing to pay for them.
• These VIP numbers were earlier snatched up by politicians, ministers and top bureaucrats.
• Number 0001 is a status symbol that gives a  sense of being numero uno.
• Number 0007 due to its association with James Bond and Mahendra Singh Dhoni as well also fetches lakhs.
• People with several cars often desired to stick to a specific pattern for all their vehicles.