New Delhi: Vehicle owners who fail to pay traffic fines through e-challans could face restrictions on a range of vehicle-related services, with the Supreme Court directing states and Union Territories to take stringent steps to recover outstanding dues.
A bench of Justices J.B. Pardiwala and K.V. Viswanathan directed authorities to take action against vehicles with unpaid e-challans, including impounding them during checks and freezing several online and vehicle-related services until the outstanding fines are cleared.
Under the directions, authorities have been asked not to renew registration certificates, issue duplicate RCs or update ownership details for vehicles with pending traffic fines. Fitness certificates and Pollution Under Control (PUC) certificates are also to be withheld until the dues are cleared.
Vehicles to Be Blacklisted on Parivahan
Vehicles with unpaid e-challans are to be blacklisted on the central Parivahan portal, effectively preventing their sale or transfer until the outstanding fines are paid.
For motorists involved in multiple traffic violations, authorities have also been directed to stop renewal of driving licences and take steps to suspend licences that are already in force.
The Supreme Court stressed that simply issuing thousands or lakhs of e-challans is not enough. Authorities must ensure that the fines imposed for traffic violations are actually recovered and that enforcement works at the ground level.
₹49,194 Crore in E-Challans
The scale of unpaid traffic fines was highlighted before the court. Authorities informed the Supreme Court that approximately ₹49,194.05 crore was recoverable from e-challans issued over a period of time, while ₹26,175.05 crore had been recovered so far.
The court has therefore directed authorities to conduct random checks to identify vehicles with unpaid e-challans. If such vehicles are found, necessary steps can be taken to impound them.
Stronger Electronic Monitoring
The Supreme Court has also called for stronger electronic surveillance on national highways, state highways and urban roads. The Centre has been asked to consider implementing recommendations aimed at expanding electronic enforcement and improving monitoring systems.
A state-wise and corridor-wise public dashboard is also to be developed, containing information on electronic surveillance, enforcement devices, their operational status and violations monitored against challans issued. The dashboard is to be updated every month.
The directions form part of the Supreme Court’s broader efforts to strengthen enforcement of road-safety and motor-vehicle laws and ensure that traffic penalties imposed through e-challans do not remain merely unpaid records.
