Traffic offenders refusing to pay up disappointing

Mumbai's traffic personnel will soon knock on the doors of errant motorists who have been fined but did not pay up. The department will start the drive from December 15 to recover dues from those penalised as it seeks to clear a substantial backlog of nearly Rs 317 crore. The department has formed 11 teams, each with two cops, for this collection operation, stated a report in this paper.

The department is also awaiting the nod for appointment of recovery agents for collection of dues. This is a stop-gap measure till permission is granted.

The Mumbai traffic department had introduced e-challans about four years ago for quick action and transparency. Instead of receipts, it introduced cameras and handheld devices to keep an eye on violators, who are served with e-challans on their mobile phones. However, the response has not been encouraging as not too many people come forward to pay the fines on their own. So far, 29 lakh e-challans remain unpaid, according to data shared by the Mumbai traffic police.

It is disappointing that people have not come forward to pay up. We tend to hold the police accountable and we are quick to point out all omissions and errors. Yet, it is important to jog our conscience as the citizenry and pay the fines. It is easy to mock haftas, scream corruption and become conveniently blind when it comes to our oversights. It is much difficult to see the reflection in the rear-view mirror.

There is joy and satisfaction in seeing our various facilities deploy technology and race to be in sync with the times. Even while we cheer that, we must be held accountable when it comes to our part. E-challans need immediate payment. It is a shame that our resources have to be used to ask people to pay up when they need to be used judiciously, even more so in these times.

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