₹23,000 Crore Unpaid! Impound Vehicles with Unpaid E-Challans, Freeze Online Services: Supreme Court Directs States
Summarized by AI; it may make mistakes. Check important info
Summarized by AI; it may make mistakes. Check important info
The Supreme Court of India has ordered all States and Union Territories to take aggressive enforcement measures against traffic violators, directing traffic police to conduct random spot checks and impound vehicles carrying unpaid e-challans.
A Bench comprising Justice J.B. Pardiwala and Justice K.V. Viswanathan issued the stringent directives after observing that over ₹23,000 crore in traffic fines remain unrecovered nationwide. Official data submitted to the court revealed that out of ₹49,194.05 crore issued through e-challans across the country, motorists have paid only ₹26,175.05 crore, leaving ₹23,019 crore pending in fines.
Total Freeze on Vehicle Portal Services
To choke operational avenues for defaulting vehicle owners, the apex court ordered the immediate freezing of all digital services on the central Parivahan portal for non-compliant vehicles. Authorities must bar defaulting vehicle owners from renewing registration certificates, obtaining duplicate documents, or updating residential addresses until all outstanding fines are settled.
The court further directed transport departments to deny vehicle fitness certificates and Pollution Under Control (PUC) certificates to defaulting vehicles, alongside blacklisting them on the Parivahan portal to prevent any attempted sale or transfer of ownership. Drivers facing multiple traffic violations also face immediate suspension of their driving licences.
Flaws in Conventional Judicial Recovery
Addressing the systemic breakdown in enforcement, the Bench noted that relying on jurisdictional courts to collect traffic penalties had proven inadequate given the massive backlog of unpaid fines. Issuing lakhs of automated tickets loses all deterrent effect without a robust on-ground recovery model, the court remarked.
The judges warned state administrations against non-compliance, stating that if judicial directives continue to exist only on paper, the court will initiate severe actions against recalcitrant authorities. The order was delivered as part of the ongoing road safety proceedings in S. Rajaseekaran v. Union of India, a public interest litigation monitored by the top court since 2012.
Mandate for AI Integration and Monthly Dashboards
The Supreme Court directed States, Union Territories, and the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to upgrade existing electronic enforcement infrastructure with artificial intelligence. These AI systems must automatically track 12 specific traffic violations listed under Rule 167A(3) of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989.
To ensure strict accountability, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) must establish a public online dashboard. Updated monthly, the platform will track state-wise electronic enforcement devices, operational status, and real-time statistics on detected violations versus generated e-challans.
