Traffic Prahari: Over 1.2 lakh violations reported on Delhi portal

Over 125,000 traffic violations were reported via Delhi's "Traffic Prahari" app, with helmetless riding and wrong-side driving as top offences.

More than 1,25,000 traffic violations were reported through the Delhi Traffic Police’s “Traffic Prahari” mobile application between January 1 and May 9 this year, with riding without helmets and driving against the flow of traffic emerging as the most frequently flagged offences, according to official data.

Photo for representation (HT Archive)

The data accessed by HT on Sunday showed that a total of 1,25,315 complaints were reported by citizens through the application during the period. This included 60,878 reports of riding “without helmet” and 34,414 complaints for driving against the flow. Defective or improper number plates ranked third, with 10,558 reports.

The application, a citizen-participation initiative, allows residents to report traffic rule violations directly through their smartphones. Users can upload photographs or videos of violations such as dangerous driving, illegal parking, red-light jumping and wrong-side driving. The complaints are then verified by traffic police personnel before action is initiated.

Police said the app was introduced to strengthen enforcement by involving citizens in monitoring violations across the city and improving compliance with road safety norms.

The data also showed that 5,975 complaints were related to violation of stop lines, while 4,989 cases involved triple riding on two-wheelers. Dangerous or zigzag driving accounted for 3,613 complaints.

Police recorded 1,573 reports of motorists driving without seat belts and 1,365 complaints linked to yellow line violations. Red-light jumping, one of the major causes of fatal crashes in the city, accounted for 1,126 complaints during the period.

The app also received complaints regarding public transport misconduct. As many as 595 reports were related to overcharging byauto rickshaws and taxis, while three complaints pertained to harassment or misbehaviour by drivers.

Illegal parking complaints stood at 102, while seven cases involved the use of hand-held communication devices while driving.

According to the data, the Traffic Prahari platform has crossed 10,00,000 registered users till May 9. More than 71,000 new users joined the platform between April 3 and May 9.

A senior traffic police officer said the high number of complaints related to helmet violations and wrong-side driving indicates persistent disregard for basic road safety rules despite repeated enforcement drives. “Over the last few months, several enforcement drives have been conducted and we have also augmented staff in the traffic police as a traffic control measure.”

Issues with the app

Users of the app, however, said that it often rejects the violation reported by them and has glitches as well.

Rejimon CK, a resident of Dwarka who has filed several requests under the Right To Information (RTI) Act, said that he has often received rejections. “The app responds after a week or two and often the reason is that the violation is not clear. There is no explanation further. It often doesn’t upload photos.”

In a post on X, lieutenant governor Taranjit Singh Sandhu urged people to follow traffic rules and cooperate with the traffic police in ensuring safer and smoother movement on city roads.

“I have directed traffic police to expand its enforcement drive across Delhi. You can also empower this movement by using the ‘Traffic Prahari’ app to report these violations and earn rewards for your contribution to road safety,” he said.

“Simple actions such as responsible parking and wearing helmets and seatbelts reflect our concern for fellow citizens as well as our own families,” he said.

Sandhu said a decongested and safer Delhi could be achieved through collective efforts and a commitment to basic traffic discipline.