Bengaluru: Police collect record traffic fines despite Covid curbs

BENGALURU: Despite lockdown and prolonged periods of less traffic, authorities have managed to collect a record amount of fines for violation of road-safety norms this year. Till August 31, the collection from across the state was close to Rs 180 crore, and given the increasing number of checks, it is expected to cross Rs 250 crore by the year-end.
The high collection comes amid growing complaints that traffic police personnel are unfairly ticketing motorists and two-wheeler riders simply to help the state government earn more revenue from fines.
The collection numbers have been increasing every year. Between January 2018 and August 2021, the Karnataka police netted a staggering Rs 701 crore in traffic penalties. The haul has been going up by Rs 30 crore every year, according to home minister Araga Jnanendra’s written reply to a question raised by Congress MLA Yashavantarayagouda Patil.
Of the Rs 701 crore, Rs 360 crore was collected in Bengaluru city alone. This year (till August 31), people booked for breaking traffic rules in the city have paid Rs 90 crore in fines, and the figure is expected to rise to Rs 120 crore by the year-end.
The fact that the tally did not dip even after the Covid-19 crisis erupted in 2020, triggering lockdowns and restrictions, suggests that there may be a significant focus on registering traffic violations across Karnataka, and not just in Bengaluru. The amount of fines collected in other cities and towns went up from Rs 60 crore in 2018 to Rs 102 crore in 2020. This year, the figure is likely to be above Rs 125 crore.
Officials attribute higher collection to the upward revision of fines and rising number of traffic violations. “Fine amounts were increased substantially in 2019. So, the collection has gone up automatically. It is not that we have been focussing on checking only traffic violations,” said DG&IG Praveen Sood.
Motorists disagree. “Earlier, police teams used to check documents for an hour or two and devote the rest of their time to traffic management. But now, they spend more time catching traffic offenders,” said cab driver Shankar. He claimed he was fined twice in August.
Patil made a similar observation. “On every major road across the state, we find police personnel stopping vehicles, mainly two-wheelers and goods vehicles, and collecting fines. People are already facing financial problems because of Covid19, and it hurts to see them getting fleeced. It is nothing but harassment,” he said, adding that he would write to CM Basavaraj Bommai and Jnanendra to put an end to this harassment.
Recently, former assembly speaker KR Rameshkumar had expressed displeasure over checking on Bengaluru-Kolar Road. Traffic cops said their department was seeing fines as a major revenue source. “Every traffic police station has been given a monthly target to book cases,” said a sub-inspector.