Bengaluru: The Bengaluru Traffic Police (BTP) collected a whopping ₹4.18 crore in pending traffic fines on Saturday, the first day of the state government’s 50% discount scheme for violators.
Over 1.4 lakh cases cleared on day one
According to officials, fines from 1,48,747 cases were settled on the opening day of the scheme. The initiative, announced by the Karnataka government on August 20, allows citizens to clear their pending e-challans at half the original amount between August 24 and September 12.
The collection highlights the huge volume of unpaid fines in the city, where traffic violations continue to be a pressing issue despite repeated awareness campaigns and strict enforcement measures.
Payment modes for citizens
Violators can pay their discounted fines through multiple channels:
- ASTraM mobile app of Bengaluru Traffic Police
- BTP official website (https://btp.karnataka.gov.in/)
- Traffic police stations and Traffic Management Centers across the city
- KarnatakaOne and BangaloreOne service centres
The authorities said the multiple platforms were introduced to make the process citizen-friendly and to avoid long queues at police stations.
Similar scheme saw huge response in 2023
This is not the first time the government has offered such a rebate. In 2023, a similar discount scheme enabled citizens to clear around two lakh pending cases, generating collections worth over ₹5.6 crore.
Officials said they expect this year’s scheme to attract even larger participation, given the high number of outstanding challans.
Drive to improve compliance
The discount drive is aimed at improving compliance with traffic rules and reducing the backlog of unpaid fines. Police believe that clearing old cases will also help them focus better on enforcing new violations and strengthening road discipline in Bengaluru.