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Truck drivers pay ₹48,000 crore in bribe annually on national highway: Report
The report found that there is no dearth of those who recover money from drivers in the name for religious causes and charity.
In a shocking revelation, a report has found that cases of bribery on the national highway have gone up by a whopping 120 per cent over the last decade. The drivers of commercial vehicles alone pay an average of ₹48,000 crore every year to access the national highway, the survey found.
According to a report published by road safety advocacy organisation Safe Life Foundation (SLF), the local police are at the forefront of taking bribes followed by the transport department.
It was also found that there is no dearth of those who recover money from drivers in the name for religious causes and charity.
According to the SLF report, the local police takes ₹22,000 crore every year from the drivers as a bribe. Officers of Regional Transport Office (RTO) recover 19,500 crores annually.
Also read: 50% truckers admit to driving when tired, fatigued
As much as ₹5,900 thousand crore is recovered annually from drivers in the name of religious events and for construction of buildings.
SLF Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Piyush Tiwari told HT’s Hindi language publication ‘Hindustan’ that the report is based on talks with 1,310 truck drivers across the country. The information has been collected from the Truck Owners Association, Transporters Association, Pleat Operators and local media on various issues.
According to the officials at the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, no studies have been conducted concerning incidents of bribery on national highways.
In FY 2006-07, an agency named Transparency in its report - after analyzing its interaction with drivers of commercial vehicles for the first time - filed a report stating that ₹22,000 crore are collected annually on roads in India.
