There’s news of significant relief regarding pending vehicle fines in the capital, Delhi. The Delhi government is preparing to implement an amnesty scheme to waive pending fines issued over the past ten years. The Transport Department has submitted a proposal to the Cabinet for approval.
According to official sources, this important proposal will be discussed at a Cabinet meeting on Wednesday, chaired by Chief Minister Rekha Gupta. If approved, approximately 24.6 million vehicle fines will be waived. However, this will represent only 60 to 70 percent of the total pending fines, as serious violations are not included.
Which fines will be waived and which will be excluded
According to sources, the government has included only compoundable fines in the amnesty scheme, meaning those that can be paid outside the court. Serious violations such as drunk driving, driving without authorization, driving without a license, and rash driving are not included in this scheme.
The scheme will cover all non-serious challans from the last ten years until October this year. The government intends to give vehicle owners a final chance. If the challan is not settled even after this, no future exemptions will be granted. Vehicle registrations for those who repeatedly fail to pay challans may also be cancelled.
Status of Pending Challans
According to the Delhi Transport Department report, a total of 24,676,302 challans are currently pending in the capital. Of these, the highest number of challans are pending in the Virtual Court (Notice Branch), with over 18.4 million. Additionally, 58.68 lakh challans are pending in the virtual court (on-the-spot), 1.66 lakh in the digital court, 43,633 in the evening court, and nearly one lakh in the regular court.
According to statistics, more than 2 lakh challans for driving without a license, more than 3.73 lakh challans for driving without a PUC (Pollution Control Certificate), and more than 2.59 lakh challans for riding two-wheelers without a helmet are pending in Delhi. The implementation of the amnesty scheme is expected to reduce the burden on the court and the department.