3 deadlines missed, but CCTV challans still out of sight in Mohali

Envisioned to make roads safer through prompt challans, project mired by three missed deadlines amid bureaucratic lapses, missing infra

Despite mounting road fatalities and growing public frustration, the project to install CCTV cameras at 20 key intersections in Mohali, aimed at reining in speeding and reckless driving by issuing e-challans, has failed to take off.

The ambitious ₹17.70-crore project, which involves installing 405 CCTV cameras at 20 intersections for strict surveillance, was aimed at issuing prompt e-challans, thereby bringing down traffic violations and accidents in Mohali. (Getty image)

In the works since February 2024, the project has already missed three deadlines—September, November and January 2025—reflecting police and local administration’s lackadaisical approach towards making roads safer, even as accidents tragically continue to claim precious lives.

The ambitious ₹17.70-crore project, which involves installing 405 CCTV cameras at 20 intersections for strict surveillance, was aimed at issuing prompt e-challans, thereby bringing down traffic violations and accidents. In 2023, the district had recorded a whopping 320 deaths in 500 road accidents, while 296 more people had died in 494 mishaps in 2022.

While the authorities’ focus should have been on reducing the loss of lives, the statistics tell a different story: 312 more lives were snuffed out on Mohali roads in 2024.

In total, 536 accidents were reported last year, with 349 individuals suffering severe injuries. And this year, another 20 lives have been claimed in road mishaps.Originally, the Punjab Police Housing Corporation (PPHC) had set a deadline of September 30, 2024, to install these cameras and initiate e-challans.

However, that target has come and gone, as well as the subsequent deadlines in November and January. After a Delhi-based company bagged the tender for the installation, cameras have been installed only at 17 of the 20 picked locations so far.

The delay has been attributed to issues such as planned roadworks by GMADA at key junctions, including Radha Swami Chowk and Sohana Gurdwara Chowk, where the contractor has not installed the cameras.

With cameras operational at 17 locations, police claim they are ready to roll out e-challans soon. However, there is one glaring issue—local authorities have yet to finalise the speed limits for Mohali roads.

Police cannot start imposing penalties for speeding till the speed limits are publicised by the local administration or the speed boards are installed, essentially leaving speedsters unchecked.

Deputy commissioner Aashika Jain stated that the SDM and committee members were still working on determining the speed limits, which may vary by location: “We will install the speed limit boards and soon release the notification for public awareness, following which traffic violators will get speeding challans.”

Meanwhile, the civic infrastructure also remains incomplete. GMADA and the local civic body have not marked zebra crossings, stop lines or repaired the traffic lights with timers at some of the 17 junctions where cameras have been installed, stalling the project’s progress.

MC commissioner T Benith said they were coordinating with the PPHC and will address these issues soon.

In addition, the theft of 60 camera batteries from several junctions before the e-challan system could even be activated has further delayed the project. To prevent future thefts, the contractor is now installing iron cages, grilles and hooters to alert the police.