No challan for speeds up to 120 kmph or 20% above limit on highways, Gadkari tells officials

Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari has said that vehicles travelling at 120 kmph, or up to 20 per cent above the speed limit, will not be fined for overspeeding without reason. The decision brings relief to crores of people who drive daily on national highways and expressways.

Complaints had been coming in for some time that an overspeeding challan was being issued as soon as a vehicle went slightly above the prescribed limit, for no major reason or for minor ones. Taking these complaints seriously, Gadkari has issued strict instructions directly to officials.

Gadkari said strict speed limit rules had often forced drivers to pay fines unnecessarily. He said challans would no longer be issued arbitrarily for speeds of up to 120 kmph or 20 per cent above the limit. All the officials concerned have been given clear and firm instructions on this, which will bring considerable relief to drivers.

Lane discipline, or staying in one's own lane, is essential on the road, and changing lanes without reason often invites serious accidents. To tackle this problem, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has taken up the large task of installing an AI-based Automatic Traffic Management System (ATMS) on the country's national highways. In the first phase of the project, the system will be installed on about 10,000 km of the NHAI network.

Alongside progress in roads and transport, special attention is also being paid to protecting the environment. The use of bio-fuel, flex fuel and ethanol (E-20) is currently being promoted on a large scale in the country. This is saving India a large amount of foreign exchange and effectively curbing pollution.

In addition, necessary and strict changes have been made to the NHAI's contract rules to improve the quality of road construction and to fully stop arbitrary conduct by highway contractors.