Pay challan or be dragged to court

Pay challan or be dragged to court
Keerthana Thorat | TNN

Bangalore: Don’t be astonished if you wake up to find a policeman at your doorstep with a challan in his hand. Rather, remind yourself of the fine you forgot to pay for traffic violations.
A whopping 30,000 unpaid challans, all from the past six months, are pending at the traffic automation centres in the city. The traffic police have come up with a smart idea to deal with the situation. They will soon send constables, to the residences of violators who have not paid challans, with a mild warning — pay up or face the music in court.
“The whole idea is to make people aware that they should pay for the violation and cannot escape. Also, wherever the telephone numbers are available, police will contact the offenders, asking them to pay up,’’ additional commissioner, traffic, Praveen Sood told The Times of India.
People can pay the challan at traffic police stations, BangaloreOne centres or any of the 35 automation centres including the main centre at Public Utility Building.
The introduction of traffic interceptors, which clicks the photographs of traffic violations, has also come as a shot in the arm for the police. The vehicle fitted with cameras will be parked by the road and quietly record violations on its cameras and instantly give printouts.
Along with this, to strengthen enforcement, the police have upgraded the Blackberry technology which has now been linked to the main automation data centre server.
“The usage of Blackberry came into effect on January 28 and has been used to impose spot fines. Over 260 inspectors are using the sets. The automation centres, formed a couple of years ago, record the traffic violations and generate police notices. Earlier, the two were working independently but now we have integrated them in Blackberry Phase 2,’’ added Sood.
The integration of the two domains will help police track the past record of offenders and their unpaid challans. For instance, when your details are entered in the Blackberry, it also shows the previous offences committed by you and also pending unpaid challans in your name, if any. In case of repeat offenders, the fine amount will be enhanced, while in cases of drunken driving, the licenses will be cancelled, Sood added.
STRICT WARNING
Traffic violators to pay fine within seven days. Those who do not pay up will be pulled to court. The offender’s licence and vehicle will be seized by the court. Fines can be paid at traffic police stations as well as BangaloreOne centres.