Bhubaneswar: Biju Janata Dal (BJD) on Monday launched a sharp attack on the Odisha Transport Department over a recent letter issued by the Office of the Transport Commissioner fixing e-challan and motor vehicle fine collection targets for enforcement officials.

Addressing a press conference, BJD spokesperson Lenin Mohanty alleged that the government was more focused on revenue collection from common people than on improving road safety and traffic management across the state.

Transport Department fixes e-challan targets for OMVD officials

The controversy erupted after the Office of the Transport Commissioner-cum-Chairman, State Transport Authority, Cuttack, issued a directive fixing officer-wise targets for detection of motor vehicle offences and collection of fines for the financial year 2026-27. The letter instructed all OMVD officials to achieve 100 per cent of the assigned targets and warned that any deviation would be viewed seriously.

Reacting to the move, Mohanty claimed the directive effectively encouraged officials to collect fines from vehicle owners irrespective of actual violations.

“The main objective appears to be how much money can be collected from ordinary citizens through motor vehicle penalties. There is no concern about whether traffic management is improving or whether vehicles are operating safely,” he alleged.

BJD raises concerns over rising road accidents and overloading

The BJD leader also referred to a recent road accident involving a Hyva truck that allegedly ran over three persons, resulting in their deaths. He questioned why the Transport Commissioner had not issued any clarification regarding the ownership of the vehicle or the circumstances leading to the tragedy.

He further accused the government of prioritising revenue generation over public safety and alleged that the administration was trying to increase fine collection under various provisions, including pollution certificates and traffic violations.

Mohanty criticised the department’s internal assessment mentioned in the letter, which stated that several OMVD officials had “underperformed” in detecting offences and collecting fines.

“If the department itself believes many officials are underperforming, why are they being retained? Is the focus only on revenue collection?” he asked.

The BJD spokesperson also highlighted issues such as overloaded vehicles, lack of parking infrastructure and recurring traffic congestion, alleging that enforcement measures were failing to address core transport and road safety concerns.
He questioned the role of enforcement officials during periods of severe traffic congestion and alleged possible understandings between transport authorities and truck or bus associations.

Demanding immediate corrective measures, Mohanty urged the government to first improve traffic systems and road safety enforcement before imposing fine collection targets on officials.

He warned that the BJD would launch protests if the government failed to reconsider the move.

Meanwhile, the Transport Department, in its letter, maintained that the targets were fixed based on rising vehicle population, increasing cases of overloading and the prevailing accident scenario in the state. 

The department stated that region-wise and officer-wise targets had been determined according to vehicle flow and offence detection data from the previous financial year.