Trucks top traffic cops’ list for e-challan recovery

Vehicles to be impounded if owners fail to pay up

MUMBAI: Collections of 51 per cent e-challans issued by traffic cops over the last six years are pending and to redress the matter, the department has decided to temporarily impound vehicles of errant drivers or owners. The vehicles will be released after the defaulter clears the unsettled dues.

Top on their list are aberrant truck drivers.

Rajvardhan Sinha, joint commissioner of police (traffic) said, “We have started this process as an experiment in case of heavy vehicles which enter the city during peak hours -- between 8 to 11am and 5pm to 9am. Each vehicle is stopped and checked for pending e-challans and if any vehicle is found to have faltered, they are not allowed to proceed further, until the fines are paid in entirety.”

Next on their list are taxi operators, including Ola and Uber drivers and also those associated with online delivery apps like Swiggy, Zomato etc. “We plan to focus on commercial vehicle owners because they account for around 70 per cent of the total traffic violations,” said Sinha.

If vehicle owners are unable to pay, a surety will be taken to ensure that they pay the penalty within 48 hours.

In the last phase, the department will crack down on private vehicle owners.

These decisions have been taken because the Mumbai traffic police believe that e-challans, first introduced in 2016 to act as an effective deterrent for errant motorists and also stem incidences of bribery amongst traffic cops, have outlived their cause.

One of the main reasons why the mandate has lost its sheen is because the Regional Transport Office (RTO) often does not have the correct mobile numbers or addresses of vehicle owners. The registration details are also not linked to the respective Aadhar

Cards or other authentic government documents, making the process of recovery tedious.

He said the RTO just cancels the licences and does not have the required space to keep in the vehicles impounded. Another challenge to trace the vehicles, Sinha said, is that many are registered outside the city.

He also pointed out that unlike in the West, the vehicle owner’s bank account details are not linked to the registration number – such a provision is absent from the Central Motor Vehicle Act. If this system were introduced here, the fine amount could be directly debited when a traffic violation is committed.

While Lok Adalats are reassuring, said Sinha, the entire process leading to the recovery is comparatively slow. The purpose of the exercise is to enforce discipline on errant motorists, which would lead to better traffic conditions within the city and ensure safety on roads. It would also help in containing the considerable number of fatalities on the roads, emphasised Sinha.

Total e-challans paid

Total amount paid as fines levied through e-challans

Fine levied through e-challans

RAJVARDHAN SINHA, joint commissioner of police (traffic)

Recovery pending

PRAFUL GANGURDE/HT A traffic cop issues an e-challan to a truck near Mulund toll naka.