ITP fail to recover e-challans worth Rs33.577 million

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad Traffic Police (ITP) are grappling with a substantial challenge in recovering e-challans worth Rs33.577 million.

According to an audit report available with HUM News English, the findings have shed light on significant discrepancies between fines issued and fines collected during the financial year 2022-23.

According to the audit report, a staggering total of 204,611 e-challans were issued to individuals for various traffic violations, amounting to Rs43,194,200 in fines.

Shockingly, only 45,612 individuals paid their fines, totaling Rs9,616,600, leaving an outstanding amount of Rs33.577 million uncollected, leading to revenue losses.

The report said that the intended deterrence effect of fines is compromised when fines remain unpaid, allowing traffic violations to persist.

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Furthermore, the audit report identified critical shortcomings in the ITP’s fine collection mechanisms. The ITP, responsible for issuing challan tickets, lacks an effective system for early fine collection. This failure to promptly recover fines undermines the fundamental principle of timely revenue realization.

Moreover, Safe City, Islamabad, has not integrated its data with provincial Excise and Taxation Offices (except for Islamabad and Punjab) as well as AJK and Gilgit. This omission obstructs the recovery of e-challans during vehicle registration renewals in these areas, the report said.

The audit report emphasized the importance of reconciling data with relevant authorities to ensure that all fines issued through electronic challans are deposited into the government treasury promptly. The lack of this reconciliation poses a serious lapse in management oversight, it said.

In response to the audit findings, the ITP administration defended that the delay in fine collection does not directly impact the national treasury. However, this explanation does not justify the substantial outstanding amount owed to the government, the audit report said.

The audit report’s recommendations include ceasing irregular practices and promptly depositing outstanding amounts into the treasury.

It said that urgent reforms are needed to rectify these shortcomings and ensure that fines are swiftly collected, not only to safeguard revenue but also to uphold traffic discipline on Islamabad’s roads.