From 15th June 2020, anyone caught jumping traffic lights or violating the speed limit anywhere in Uttar Pradesh would be served an e-challan. Earlier only 10 major districts like Lucknow, Ghaziabad, Gautam Budh Nagar, Varanasi, Agra, Bareilly, Prayagraj and Kanpur had this facility, however, UP’s traffic directorate has assured that the said facility would be implemented in all 75 districts of the state and that the violators would not be served manual challans anymore. 

Deepak Ratan, the Inspector General of Police (traffic) has also stated that e-challans would be integrated with the virtual courts in future, making it easier for litigants to get cases resolved and that this system would bring in more transparency in the prosecution of vehicles found in violations of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. Under the new system, if a person breaks a rule or is in violation of the traffic guidelines, an e-challan would be issued, and the owner of the vehicle would instantly get an SMS. This process is also integrated to catch repeat offenders, who would be liable to pay higher fines. 

Further, it was stated that this procedure would also be made applicable to the Government Railway Police and the state government from March 2020 has also sanctioned each district with a certain amount of money for postal charges of sending the e-challans and this would be generated along with the offender’s photo to his/her residence. 

This newly integrated system would assist the cops on duty with portable cameras to click pictures of errant drivers and vehicles and instantly send them to the database of the district. The said assistance would be incorporated with the additional help of an app installed on the policemen’s mobile phones as mentioned by additional superintendent of police (traffic), Varanasi, Shrawan Kumar Singh. 

Mr. Singh also reiterated the fact that the database of each district would allow the officials to identify and prosecute repeat offenders who would be levied heavy penalties. In Major districts like Lucknow, policemen would be posted on important routes while wearing body cameras to live stream the offenders further sharing the footage with the control center.