Bhubaneswar, Odisha – Beginning Saturday, February 1st, the State Transport Authority (STA) will deploy an E-Detection system across all 22 toll gates in Odisha to monitor motor vehicle insurance compliance.
This initiative seeks to ensure that all vehicles operating on Odisha’s roadways possess valid insurance policies. The automated system will identify vehicles lacking valid insurance and subsequently issue e-challans to the owners.
The primary objective of this enforcement is to mitigate the risk of accidents and provide financial support to the families of accident victims. Section 146 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, mandates that all motor vehicles maintain current insurance coverage.
Violators of this regulation will face penalties stipulated under Section 196. These penalties include a fine of ₹2,000 or imprisonment for a period of up to three months, or both. Repeat offenders will be subject to a fine of ₹4,000 or imprisonment for up to three months, or both fines.
The STA has finalized all preparations necessary for the system’s launch. The E-Detection system has been previously utilized to monitor violations related to permits, fitness certificates, and tax compliance. The addition of insurance compliance monitoring is expected to further bolster road safety within the state.
The Odisha government’s decision to expand the scope of the E-Detection system to include insurance violations represents a crucial step towards reducing the prevalence of uninsured vehicles on the state’s roads. This is expected to provide much-needed relief to the families of road accident victims who, in the past, were often denied compensation due to the absence of valid insurance coverage.
