Overspeeding In Bhubaneswar Can Now Cost You Rs 7,000

If you like speed thrills, and love to chat on phone while driving, then beware! Your antics on roads will cost you dearly as authorities in Odisha’s Capital city have decided to come down heavily on rogue motorists, those overspeeding in particular.

As per reports, the maximum vehicular speed limit on Bhubaneswar roads has been fixed at 50Kph and anything more will be considered overspeeding.

The Bhubaneswar Smart City Limited (BSCL) has installed Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) and Traffic Violation Detection System (TVDS) at 13 different locations to detect fast moving vehicles and penalise them accordingly.

Those 13 places include, Patia Square, Power House Square, Kalinga Stadium Square, Capital Hospital Square, KIIT Square, KIIT Campus-3 Square, Sishu Bhawan Square, from Vani Vihar to Sishu Bhawan, Capital Square, Shastri Nagar Square, Rajmahal Square, Trident Hotel Square and Naka Gate Square.

A fine of Rs 7,000 will be imposed on the violators. However, it will be reduced to Rs 2,000 if the driver produces his/ her Driving License at the time of payment of the fine.

As per the provisions for issuance of challan, the culprit vehicle owner will receive a SMS on the registered mobile phone number informing about the penalty. The Driving License (DL) will be suspended for 3 months for every offence. However, the DL will be cancelled on the fourth offence.

“It is an online automated system. Cameras will capture the overspeeding vehicles. Challan will be issued after verification,” said Bhubaneswar Traffic ACP, Swastik Panda.

He added, “Our intension is not just for collecting fines, we also want commuters to be cautious.”

“Overspeeding is one of the major causes of the increase in accident cases in Odisha. E-Challan is only a method to check the cases ,” State Transport Minister Padmanabha Behera said.

Meanwhile, the new decision evoked mixed response. While some motorists appreciated the move, some others said the hiked penality would be a ‘torture’ on the commuters.

“Fine of Rs 200-300 is okay, but Rs 7,000 is an exorbitant amount,” said a daily commuter.

As per the NCRB and State government data, everyday around 27 accidents occur in Odisha, killing 13 commuters on an average.