PANAJI
The Goa government has drawn a hard line against motorists attempting to outsmart its AI-powered traffic surveillance system by hiding or tampering with vehicle registration plates. Government officials have warned that offenders could face suspension of their vehicle Registration Certificate (RC) for a minimum of three months, apart from penalties under the law.
With the AI-powered traffic enforcement system now fully operational and e-challans for all Phase-I traffic violations taking effect from August 1, senior officials admitted that some motorists resorted to removing, obscuring or damaging their number plates to escape detection by automated cameras. The response from enforcing agencies, however, has been swift.
“The Traffic Police and Regional Transport Office (RTO) officials have already launched enforcement drives penalising not only vehicles with illegal fancy number plates but also those deliberately concealing or defacing registration plates. Vehicles found plying without number plates are also being intercepted and penalised... We will get stricter by suspending RCs for a minimum of three months,” the official told The Goan.
The government said the emergence of such evasive tactics comes even as AI-driven enforcement has begun delivering the behavioural change it was designed to achieve.
“Daily violations have fallen drastically from around 52,000 recorded in June... However, the most common offences continue to be riding without helmets and driving without seat belts... though compliance has improved significantly by around 80 per cent compared to what it was two months back. We have also seen better adherence to insurance and other mandatory vehicle documentation,” the source said.
Retired Supreme Court judge Justice Abhay Manohar Sapre, who heads the Supreme Court Committee on Road Safety, stressed mandatory enforcement of helmets and seat belts. Officials added that survival chances in accidents reduce drastically when basic safety gear is not used.
"Most of the fatalities are entirely avoidable. Despite repeated awareness campaigns, some people continue to violate traffic rules. Compliance with the law is essential not only to avoid penalties but also to protect one's own life and that of other road users," the source said.
As per government records, April, May, June and the December-January period consistently record a higher number of road accidents in Goa, making strict adherence to traffic rules particularly crucial during these months.
