Red Light, Green Dues: Unpaid Traffic Fines Pile Up to ₹9,000 Crore

India collected traffic fines worth Rs 12,000 crore in 2024, but a staggering Rs 9,000 crore—75% of the amount collected—is still pending, says the first-ever Challan Report by auto-tech firm CARS24. Over 8 crore challans were issued last year, nearly one for every two vehicles on the road. Overspeeding accounted for close to half of all offenses, followed by helmet and seatbelt not-wearing, illegal parking, and jumping of red lights.

 

Places like Gurugram issued over 4,500 challans on a daily basis, realizing approximately Rs 10 lakh daily in fines. The helmet offence fine of Rs 3 lakh was collected in a month in Noida. The worst include instances of a Bengaluru two-wheeler driver who was charged Rs 2.91 lakh for 475 offences and a Haryana lorry owner who was charged Rs 2 lakh for overloading.

 

Weak enforcement and low deterrence are cited by the report, with most of the offenders evading punishment via bribery or absence of follow-up. The experts suggest more stringent enforcement, better application of technology, and a change in culture from fear-based compliance to civic obligation to improve road safety.

 

Source: CARS24 Challan Report, Siasat, CNBC-TV18