According to transport minister Antony Raju, the state government will engage in discussions with insurance companies to establish a condition for vehicle insurance renewal. This condition requires that all outstanding penalties for traffic violations be settled before renewal can take place. The government’s decision is prompted by the low rate of fine payments from motorists who have been caught by recently installed artificial intelligence cameras. While fines totaling Rs 25.81 crore have been issued to motorists for traffic violations, only Rs 3.37 crore has been collected thus far. Since the AI cameras became operational on June 5, a total of 32,42,277 violations have been detected. Out of these, 15,83,367 violations have been verified and 3,23,604 challans have been issued.
Raju noted that the recent increase in staff numbers has facilitated the verification and processing of rule violations, ultimately expediting the overall process. Among the recorded violations, the highest number is for helmet-less travel (2,21,251 cases), followed by pillion riders travelling without helmets (1,50,606 cases). Additionally, the cameras have detected 1,70,043 cases of drivers not wearing seatbelts and 1,86,673 cases of front-seat passengers without seatbelts. Other violations include 5,886 cases of triple riding on two-wheelers and 6,118 cases of mobile phone usage while driving.
The transport minister further stated that an online facility for registering complaints will be implemented starting from September 1. Moreover, as of September 1, seatbelts will be mandatory for drivers and passengers in heavy vehicles. It’s important to note that seatbelts are already obligatory for all vehicles registered after 1994.
Raju dismissed the allegations that VIP vehicles are exempt from penalties, asserting that fines have been imposed on 328 government vehicles thus far. The AI cameras detected violations by vehicles of MLAs 19 times and vehicles of MPs 10 times, the minister added.
