Data: Only 40% (About Rs. 17,000 Crores) of The eChallan Penalty Amount Collected Between 2015 & 2024
As per data available on the eChallan website, more than 30 crore challans were issued between 2015 & 2024, amounting to a total penalty of close to Rs. 44,000 crores. Out of this amount, only about 40% is collected so far.
Road accidents in India are a major public safety concern, causing thousands of deaths and injuries annually. Factors like reckless driving, poor road conditions, inadequate enforcement of traffic laws, and lack of awareness contribute to the high accident rate. Strict regulations, including speed limits, seatbelt and helmet mandates, and penalties for violations, are crucial in reducing fatalities.
As observed in our previous coverage (here, here, & here), India ranks third in global road accidents, and first in fatalities, and the severity of accidents is increasing year after year. Several amendments were made to the Motor Vehicles Act (MVA) in 2019 to strengthen enforcement, and to address several key issues causing road accidents. Some of these changes include increasing penalties for various traffic violations, penalties on vehicles failing to pass fitness tests, and accountability of contractors for improper and poor design of roads, among others.
Additionally, it brought the system of electronic monitoring through electronic devices such as CCTV cameras, speed detection cameras, Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR), and Red Light Violation Detection (RLVD). It also brought in the system of electronic challan (eChallan), whereby fines for traffic violators are issued digitally instead of relying on physical tickets. The violators receive an SMS or email with details of the offence, fine amount, and payment options.
In this story, we look at the trends in the eChallans issued, those pending, along with revenue collected through the penalties imposed through eChallans.
The data is sourced from Dataful, which curated the centralized eChallan data published by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH)
Note: The expression ‘state’ in the story also includes Union Territories (UTs). Further, the word eChallans is referred to as Challans. It also does not include states that are not part of the Parivahan online module of MoRTH.
Variation in the data published on number of eChallans issued
The Challan data is published by MoRTH on the dedicated portal from the year 2015, separately for challans issued by traffic and transport departments. There are broadly two categories by which data is being published, with the first being all India data on number of challans issued, disposed, and pending, together with separate data on number of challans taken to court, disposed and pending at court. Additionally, all India data on the amount collected and revenue earned from penalties imposed on traffic violators is also published. The second category of data is state-wise number of challans issued, and revenue earned.
The comparison of data in these two categories shows different values for the number of challans issued, and revenue realized across the years from 2015 to 2024. The following table shows the variation in the total number of challans issued.
Variation in the figures of eChallans issued (value in absolute numbers)
| Year | All India data | State-wise data |
| 2015 | 112304 | 36789 |
| 2016 | 404268 | 68907 |
| 2017 | 592747 | 368816 |
| 2018 | 4317461 | 3943364 |
| 2019 | 20713202 | 15672647 |
| 2020 | 41182104 | 28911924 |
| 2021 | 42396982 | 35804723 |
| 2022 | 47644449 | 41660270 |
| 2023 | 66577863 | 60924710 |
| 2024 | 79191679 | 74247150 |
Similar variation also exists for data on revenue earned through imposing penalties on the traffic violators. While the variation has reduced in the recent years, it still remains.
Further, the state-wise data does not include the number of challans pending with the courts, and those that are disposed of.
Between 2015 & 2024, an average of 40% challans are paid while 35% are sent to court
The analysis of all India data on total challans issued shows that between 2015 & 2024, an average of 40% of challans were disposed of by the departments while another 35% were sent to court for disposal.
In 2015, out of the total 1,12,204 challans issued, 73,001 challans (65%) were sent to the court. The share of challans sent to court varies across the years between 2015 & 2024, with the highest being year 2016 at 70%, and the lowest being year 2018 at 18%. Overall, an average of about 35% of challans were sent to court for adjudication during the period.
Similarly, the number of challans disposed of by the department itself was 13,432 or 12% of the total challans issued. This has decreased to 9% in 2016, and then risen to 47% in 2017, and 77% in 2018. Since then, it has gradually come down and stood at 37% in 2023, and further down to 24% in 2024.
An average of 14% of eChallans are disposed of by the Court
Despite variation in the percentage of challans sent to courts each year, the number of challans received by the court for adjudication and disposal has steadily grown between 2015 & 2024. However, compared to challan disposal rate of departments, the disposal rate by courts has remained low.
In 2015, 1628 out of 73,001 challans were disposed by courts, which is 2% disposal. This has risen to 12% in 2017, further to 22% in 2018, and 25% in 2019. Since then, it has gradually come down and stood at 5% in 2024. Overall, between 2015 & 2024, an average of 14% of total challans received by it were disposed by the court.
Over 17 thousand crores of revenue collected through eChallans
Together with the rise in the number of challans issued, the total penalty amount and the revenue earned (excluding the penalty amount returned to the violators) have increased substantially, during each year from 2015 to 2024.
In 2015, the total challan amount was about Rs. 28 crores, out of which the revenue collected was Rs. 5 crores at 19%. In 2016, the percentage of collections increased to 22%, and peaked at 77% in 2019. It has come down to 35% in 2023, and further down to 24% in 2024. Between 2015 & 2024, a total amount of Rs. 43,892 crores was the total eChallan amount across India. Out of this, Rs. 17,425 crores, or about 40% was collected.