50% discounts backfire: Bengaluru traffic police seeks higher penalties for violators

What began as a temporary amnesty scheme to clear millions of backlog traffic challans in Karnataka has turned into a routine expectation for motorists — one that Bengaluru Traffic Police warn is actively eroding road safety and law enforcement across the city.

Expressing serious concern over the state government’s frequent 50% discounts on pending traffic fines, the traffic police department is now preparing proposals to raise minimum penalties to instill deterrence among lawbreakers.

The practice of offering fine concessions was initially initiated following directions from the Karnataka State Legal Services Authority (KSLSA) to settle long-pending traffic e-challans. Since 2023, the government has rolled out the 50% waiver six separate times — thrice in 2023, twice in 2025, and once in 2026.

The most recent discount window, which ran from June 21 to July 10, 2026, cleared roughly 19.13 lakh traffic challans and generated ₹55 crore in revenue for the state treasury. However, senior traffic officials point out that these figures mask a growing institutional failure: motorists are now intentionally withholding payment for traffic violations, choosing to wait out the clock until the government announces the next rebate.

Traffic officials noted that the department was not consulted prior to these decisions, hampering efforts to maintain order on Bengaluru's congested roads. Rather than encouraging timely compliance, the recurring waivers have cultivated an environment where drivers view penalties as negotiable discounts rather than legal consequences.

To counter this trend, the Bengaluru Traffic Police are moving to submit proposals to the government to hike the minimum traffic violation fine back to ₹1,000.

The issue traces back to 2019 under the Motor Vehicles Amendment Act, when the state government reduced penalties for basic infractions — such as riding without a helmet or driving without a seatbelt — from ₹1,000 down to ₹500.

When the 50% rebate is applied on top of these already reduced rates, the penalty for major safety infractions drops to just ₹250. Police officers argue that such negligible amounts fail to serve as a genuine penalty or deter dangerous driving habits.

While revenue collection numbers during discount drives remain high, traffic enforcement authorities maintain that the primary objective of traffic fines is not revenue generation, but discipline. Without strict and predictable enforcement, traffic police caution that the fear of law enforcement will continue to diminish, endangering motorists and pedestrians alike across the city.