Traffic challans due? Pay before April 1 to avoid license suspension!
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Synopsis
New traffic regulations are now in effect, threatening license suspensions for unpaid e-challans. The government aims to improve e-challan recovery rates and is considering raising insurance premiums for repeat offenders.
With the start of the new financial year, stricter traffic regulations have come into force, putting drivers with outstanding fines on notice. Authorities have cautioned that there may be harsh consequences, such as the seizure of driver's licenses, if outstanding debts are not paid.
If e-challans are not paid for more than three months, driving licenses may be banned for three months under the new regulations. A three-month license suspension may also result from receiving three challans for reckless driving or red light offences in a single fiscal year.
The government's worry over the poor recovery rates of e-challans—just 40% of penalties are collected—is what is driving this campaign. The government is thinking of raising insurance rates for car owners who have at least two outstanding challans from the previous fiscal year in an effort to further enforce compliance.
The government intends to put in place a thorough standard operating procedure since it understands that certain penalties can be unpaid because of mistakes or delayed notifications. This would include monthly notifications to car owners regarding unpaid penalties and minimum requirements for traffic cameras.
At 14%, Delhi now has the lowest recovery rate for challans, followed by Karnataka (21%), Tamil Nadu (27%), and Uttar Pradesh (27%). Maharashtra and Haryana, on the other hand, have the highest recovery rates, at 62% and 76%, respectively.
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After 23 states and seven UTs were ordered by the Supreme Court to provide compliance reports demonstrating the use of electronic monitoring as stipulated in the Central Motor Vehicles Act, the specifics were worked out. In order to improve traffic management and the enforcement of traffic regulations, Section 136A of the Act calls for the deployment of modern technology, including speed and CCTV cameras, speed guns, body-worn cameras, and automated number plate recognition systems. This is essential for impartial rule enforcement and detection.
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