Introduction
In today's digital age, technological advancements have changed various aspects of our lives, including how we make payments. One area that has seen significant changes is the payment of challans or fines. Traditionally, challan payments required individuals to visit physical locations such as banks or government offices to clear their dues. However, the rise of online payment systems has made the process more convenient and efficient. This article explores the concept of online challan payment, commonly known as e-challan payment, and highlights its benefits, features and steps involved in making payment through this method.
Understanding E Challan Payment
E-challan payment refers to the process of making electronic payments of fines or challans issued by various government authorities. It is an online payment system that eliminates the need for physical visits to government offices and allows individuals to pay their dues from the comfort of their homes or offices. This digital payment method has gained significant popularity due to its efficiency, speed and ease of use.
How Does E-Challan Work?
For some curious people, the first question would be how the system works even before considering how to pay the e-challan. Traffic police departments across the country have installed CCTV cameras in cities which are enabled with the e-challan system. The intention is to curb the number of accidents on the roads.
The cameras capture video continuously. If a motorist breaks the law, cameras will capture the incident. Then the police will search for the vehicle number and register an offence against him. Then they will contact RTO for vehicle and owner details. These details include information like the violator's address, vehicle make, etc. After this, an SMS will be sent to the phone of the traffic violator. The SMS will include the traffic violation's location, date and time.
What is the Need for E-Challan?
The vehicles' continuous movement makes it difficult and time-consuming for traffic police to monitor and regulate the challan individually. Also, there was a rise in human errors and fake challans, which needed to be eradicated. The following reasons may describe the need to introduce e-challan
- To reduce corruption and easily enforce traffic laws.
- To bring transparency in the traffic system and challan process to eliminate fake encounters.
- It is not possible to install traffic police everywhere, but with cameras and e-challan, there’s always an eye watching you.
- Possibility to reduce bribery from the traffic system.
- To ease the challan submission process and hence increase traffic challan collection.
- To increase discipline and decrease violations, lowering motor insurance premiums.
- All in all, to benefit the general public, traffic law enforcement system, and government simultaneously
Benefits of E-Challan Payment
An individual can get various benefits from online challan payment. Below are some of the benefits of e-challan payment or online challan payment:
- Convenience: The primary advantage of e-challan payment is its convenience. Providing an online platform allows individuals to make payments anytime, avoid long queues and save valuable time and effort.
- Time-saving: With e-challan payment, there is no need to visit multiple government offices or banks to settle various fines. The online system consolidates all payments in one place, enabling users to complete transactions efficiently and quickly.
- Accessibility: Online challan payment platforms are available to individuals nationwide, regardless of location. This access allows people in remote areas to settle their fines instantly, bridging the gap between urban and rural areas.
- Secure transactions: E-challan payment systems adopt strong security measures to ensure the security of the financial information of users. Encryption technology and a secure payment gateway protect sensitive data, reducing the risk of fraudulent activities.
- Digital recordkeeping: The e-challan payment platform maintains a digital record of all user transactions. This feature eliminates the need for manual paperwork, making recordkeeping more efficient, organized and easily accessible when needed.
List of Traffic Rules, Fines, and Penalties in India
The government made some drastic changes to the traffic violation fines as per the latest amendment to The Motor Vehicles Act, 2019. The relatively new traffic rules are more stringent, with a significant increase in penalties for traffic violations.
The following table denotes the traffic challan list and the respective traffic fines.
|
Traffic violation |
Updated penalty for offences from September 2019 |
|
General offence (Improper number plate, illegal parking, etc.) |
First time: INR 500; Second time: INR 1.5K |
|
Not obeying the orders from the Authorities or Not sharing information |
INR 2K |
|
Not following the road rules |
INR 500 to INR 1K |
|
Driving without a valid Driving Licence |
INR 5K |
|
Driving an unauthorised vehicle without a valid licence |
INR 5K |
|
Driving a vehicle after disqualification |
INR 10K |
|
Overspeeding |
Light Motor Vehicle: INR 1K to INR 2K; Medium passenger/goods vehicle: INR 2K to INR 4K; Second-time/repeat offence: Impounding of Driving Licence |
|
Rash driving |
First time: Imprisonment of 6 months to 1 year and INR 1K to INR 5K penalties. ; Second time: Imprisonment of up to 2 years and up to Rs. 10,000 penalties. |
|
Driving under the influence of intoxicating substances |
First time: INR 10K and imprisonment of up to 6 months. ; Second time: INR 15K and imprisonment of up to 2 years. |
|
Driving in a mentally or physically unfit state |
First time: INR 1K; Second time: INR 2K |
|
Driving/riding a vehicle without valid motor insurance |
First time: INR 2K and imprisonment of up to 3 months. ; Second time: INR 4K and imprisonment of up to 3 months. |
|
Illegal racing and overspeeding |
First time: INR 5K and imprisonment of up to 3 months. ; Second time: INR 10K and imprisonment of up to 1 year. |
|
Driving an oversized vehicle |
INR 5K |
|
Accident-related offences |
First time: INR 5K and imprisonment of up to 6 months. ; Second time: INR 10K and imprisonment of up to 1 year. |
|
Driving/riding a vehicle without a valid Registration Certificate |
First time: INR 5K; Second time: INR 10K |
|
Driving a vehicle without a permit |
INR 10K and imprisonment of up to 6 months. |
|
Driving/riding a vehicle while using a mobile phone |
INR 5K |
|
Overloading the vehicle |
INR 20K (INR 2K per extra tonne) |
|
Overloading passengers |
INR 1K per extra passenger |
|
Overloading a two-wheeler |
Disqualification of DL for 3 months and a penalty of INR 2K |
|
Not wearing a helmet while riding a two-wheeler |
Disqualification of DL for 3 months and a penalty of INR 1K |
|
Not wearing a seat belt while driving |
INR 1K |
|
Not giving way for emergency vehicles |
INR 10K and imprisonment of 6 months. |
|
Offences committed by juveniles |
Imprisonment of 3 years and a penalty of INR 25K (Vehicle owner/guardian to be deemed guilty) |
|
Offence related to enforcing officers (Example: Offering bribe) |
Twice the penalty under the relevant section. |
|
Aggregator offences (Licence-related) |
INR 25K to Rs. 1 lakh |
|
Usage of horn in Silent Zone |
First time: INR 2K; Second time: INR 4K |
|
Travelling without a ticket in public transport vehicles |
Rs. 500 |
How to Make E-Challan Payments?
Users can make their challan payment online from various platforms, such as from the official website of the e-challan parivahan or Paytm.com. Hence, we have mentioned the steps to make e-challan payment:
- Online platforms: Government authorities and organizations have developed dedicated online platforms for e-challan payment. Users can visit these websites or download the respective mobile applications to initiate the payment.
- Registration: To make e-challan payments, users may be required to create an account on the relevant platform. This usually involves providing personal details such as name, contact information and identity documents.
- Selecting the challan type: Users can select the type of challan they wish to pay once registered. This may include traffic violations, parking fines, tax payments or other penalties.
- Providing necessary information: Users must enter the relevant details required to process the payment, such as challan number, vehicle registration number and personal identification information. It is necessary to double-check the accuracy of the information provided to avoid any payment discrepancy.
- Choosing the payment method: E-challan payment platforms offer multiple payment options, including credit or debit cards, net banking and mobile wallets. Users can select their preferred payment method and proceed to the payment gateway.
- Payment confirmation: Users should review the Transaction Summary after entering payment details to ensure accuracy. Once satisfied, they can proceed with the payment by clicking on the "Pay Now" button or similar options. The system will generate a confirmation receipt or acknowledgement for the completed transaction.
- Digital receipts and acknowledgements: E-challan payment platforms provide instant digital receipts or acknowledgements for successful transactions. Users can download or print these receipts for their records and reference purposes.
How to Pay e-Challan via Paytm?
The Paytm App on your smartphone is another option for making the payment. To complete the payment successfully, follow the below-mentioned steps:
- Open the Paytm app on your phone.
- Click “View More” from the “Recharge & Bill Payments” section.
- Under “City Services” or “Other Services”, choose “Challan”.
- Select the “traffic authority”.
- Enter all the required details, i.e., e-challan number, vehicle number, registration certificate number, driving license, etc.
- Click on the “Proceed” button.
- Enter the fine amount and select the payment mode, i.e., net banking, debit card, credit card, PayTM UPI.
- Pay your fine and complete the payment.
How to Check E-Challan Status?
Once you have received the information about the e-challan generated, you can check the status to be sure of the information and amount. The government has made it easier to track and check the status of e-challan. You can follow the mentioned steps to check the e-challan status online.
- Go to the official website of e-challan (https://echallan.parivahan.gov.in/)
- Click the “Check Online Services” tab and select “Check Challan Status”.
- Provide the required information from any of the given options of Challan Number, Vehicle Number, or DL Number.
- Enter the Captcha and click on “Get Detail”.
- Your e-challan status will be reflected on the screen.
What to Do if You Got a Wrong E-Challan?
No matter how efficient the technical systems are, errors are possible everywhere. Although the cameras are sufficient to capture the vehicle number, sometimes you may need help to find out that you have mistakenly been issued the wrong e-challan. If you are stuck in this situation, you can follow these steps to fix it.
Step 1: Collect the evidence of your innocence to raise a complaint.
Step 2: Contact the Traffic Police Helpline Number 0120-2459171 between 6:00 am to 10:00 pm or email helpdesk_echallan@gov.in to inform them about the wrong e-challan.
Step 3: They will verify the claim and revert to you within 15 days.
Using the Official Parivahan Sewa Website
The government has made filing and solving your issues easy by using the official Parivahan Sewa website. With the Grievance System available on the website, you can directly submit your traffic grievance online by following the steps below:
Step 1: Go to the official Parivahan Sewa Website and click on the “Complaint” option on the top bar.
Step 2: Submit the required details and description of your complaint.
Step 3: Finally, “Submit” the complaint after checking all the information you submitted is true.
Step 4: You can check the status of your complaint here anytime.
Tips to Avoid e-challan
The only simple way to avoid e-challan is to follow traffic laws. The Government of India passed the Motor Vehicle Act 1988 to ensure safe driving practices. Hence, you can follow these rules to avoid e-challan.
- Always wear a belt or helmet while driving.
- Always drive on the left and let other vehicles pass through the right.
- Overtake a vehicle from the right side of the lane after they give you the way.
- Use indicators to notify other vehicles about your turns and avoid overspeeding.
- Stop before the red light when the traffic light turns red.
- Follow traffic signals, sign boards, lane markings, speed limits, and parking regulations.
- Ensure you have all necessary documents, like license, insurance, pollution papers, etc.
- Don’t use your mobile phone while driving.
- Keep your vehicle fit and properly maintained (like horns, breaks, lights, and others).
- Never drive while drunk or under the influence of a drug, as it is a serious offence.
Conclusion
The e-challan payment system has revolutionized settling fines and penalties. By leveraging the power of digital platforms, individuals can now make payments conveniently from anywhere, at any time. The benefits of e-challan payment, such as convenience, time savings, accessibility, secure transactions and digital recordkeeping, make it an attractive option for users. Furthermore, the step-by-step process of making e-challan payments ensures individuals a smooth and hassle-free experience.
As technology advances, government officials and organizations must adopt online payment systems to increase the overall efficiency and transparency of fine settlement. By encouraging the adoption of e-challan payment methods, societies can reduce the burden on physical infrastructure, streamline administrative processes and provide a seamless experience to citizens while paying their dues.