Centre says Uttar Pradesh recorded highest number of traffic violations via e-challan

The Story in Brief

Uttar Pradesh recorded the highest number of traffic violations detected through the e-challan system and holds the largest pool of unrecovered penalties, Parliament was told. Between 2021 and 30 July 2026 Uttar Pradesh issued 78.9 million e-challans, about 20% of the national total; together with Delhi the two states account for over half of unpaid traffic fines. Tamil Nadu issued 63.7 million e-challans in the same period, Delhi 47.1 million, Kerala 45.8 million and Gujarat 19.9 million.

Unpaid dues were highest in Uttar Pradesh (₹113,315 crore, 25.60%) and Delhi (₹110,760 crore, 25.02%), the only states exceeding ₹100,000 crore. Tamil Nadu stood third with ₹3,601 crore (8.14%), followed by Haryana (₹2,620 crore, 5.92%) and Odisha (₹2,167 crore, 4.9%). Hilly and island territories reported far fewer challans and lower pending fines: Ladakh issued 598 challans and has ₹2,500 pending; Nagaland 1,866 and ₹53 lakh; Arunachal 2,120 and ₹54 lakh; Sikkim 5,533 and ₹1.46 crore; Andaman & Nicobar ₹1.99 crore. Replying to MP Sanjay Seth, Union road transport minister Nitin Gadkari said the Central Motor Vehicles (Third Amendment) Rules, 2026 will disqualify drivers with five or more offences in a year from January 2026 and that pending e-challans will block vehicle or licence-related transactions.

The Indian Opinion

The figures are striking and may prompt alarm, but they combine enforcement volume, unpaid fines and accounting across diverse states. A high number of e-challans in Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu could reflect larger populations, more active digital enforcement or concentrated traffic monitoring rather than only wilful non‑payment. Likewise, very large unpaid amounts in a few states may include long‑standing cases or aggregated penalties rather than recent defaults.

The new rule disqualifying repeat offenders and linking e-challan clearance to vehicle and licence services is a clear enforcement response, but the report gives little detail on implementation, timelines or safeguards. Ordinary readers would reasonably seek clarity on how disputes, compliance assistance and administrative errors will be handled before concluding how the measures will affect everyday motorists.

Original article: UP has the highest number of traffic violations caught on e-challan: Centre (www.hindustantimes.com)

This story was summarised and commented on by AI from the source linked above.