Road safety: SC asks 23 states, 7 UTs to file reports on compliance of legal provisions, rules

New Delhi: In a significant order, the Supreme Court on Monday directed 23 states and seven union territories to file compliance reports indicating implementation of the Motor Vehicle law's recent provisions besides rules on electronic monitoring and road safety measures.

A bench comprising Justices Abhay S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan noted six states and a UT, namely, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala and Delhi, had filed their compliance reports.

The top court on September 2, 2024 passed directions on the implementation of Section 136A of the Motor Vehicles Act read with Rule 167A of the Motor Vehicles Rules which allow authorities to electronically monitor speeding vehicles.

The bench has now asked the remaining 23 states and seven UTs to file their compliance reports which will be shared with the Supreme Court committee on road safety.

The apex court panel, in turn, would look into all aspects and provide its inputs which could be considered by the Centre in framing the standard operating procedure on electronic monitoring and enforcement of road safety measures, the bench said.

Senior advocate Gaurav Agrawal, assisting the bench as an amicus curiae, informed the bench that six states had filed their reports and the necessary directions may be passed with regard to them.

The bench said it would consider the aspect on March 25 and its panel on road safety, in the meantime, could seek assistance of the six states while deliberating upon the reports.

Section 136A, introduced in 2021 in the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, aims to deploy advanced technologies such as speed cameras, closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras, speed guns, body-worn cameras, and automatic number plate recognition systems to ensure better traffic management and enforcement of traffic laws.

It also emphasises electronic monitoring on national highways, state highways, and urban roads in cities with a population exceeding one million.

Rule 167A of the Motor Vehicles Rules deal with the implementation and other regulatory aspects of road safety measures.

Under the rule, the state governments have to ensure installation of electronic enforcement devices at high-risk and high-density corridors on national and state highways, and at critical junctions at least in major cities with more than a million population and also including 132 cities as specified in the rules.

"Section 136A of the Motor Vehicles Act is an innovative provision with the potential to transform road safety enforcement by leveraging technology. Proper implementation will ensure road discipline and allow for the efficient prosecution of violators," the bench had observed.

It directed the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways to circulate the order to all states and union territories for immediate compliance.

The bench said the state governments were required to install devices in high-risk corridors, major junctions, and cities with populations exceeding one million.

Devices such as body-worn cameras used by enforcement officials must notify offenders about ongoing recording, it said, and offenders will be issued electronic challans, complete with photographic evidence, date, time, and location stamps, apart from details of the violations.

The court, however, clarified electronic enforcement devices must not be used for surveillance purposes unrelated to traffic violations.

The Supreme Court committee on road safety was tasked by the bench to oversee the nationwide implementation of the measures.

The top court was hearing a PIL on road safety filed in 2012.