Nearly 95,000 passenger vehicles in Maharashtra have been fitted with GPS-enabled Vehicle Location Tracking Devices (VLTDs) to strengthen commuter safety, particularly for women and children, officials confirmed on Sunday.
The devices provide real-time monitoring and an onboard SOS alert system. If a passenger presses the red panic button, the system immediately sends an alert to the control room along with the vehicle’s exact location.
A senior Maharashtra Motor Vehicles Department (MMVD) official said the state’s centralised control room, set up at the Andheri RTO in Mumbai, is operational round-the-clock. Staffed by assistant motor vehicle inspectors and service provider teams, it ensures immediate action following any distress alert.
The mandate for installing such devices comes under Rule 125H of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules 1989, introduced through a Union government notification on 28 November 2016. Since 1 January 2019, all public service vehicles, excluding two-wheelers, auto-rickshaws, and e-rickshaws, must have tracking devices and emergency buttons.
The control room began operations in October 2024, and tracked vehicles now include school buses and vans, luxury and tourist taxis, contract carriage buses, and stage carriage buses. Maharashtra has over 4.9 crore registered vehicles, with more than 5.5 lakh falling into these passenger categories, highlighting the large number still awaiting device installation.
Currently, only vehicles registered after January 1, 2019, are required to comply. Officials expect that once the state government makes the devices mandatory for older vehicles as well, nearly all passenger vehicles in Maharashtra will be fitted within two years.
However, the rollout faces challenges. As many as 18,900 devices were recently reported non-functional, leaving just over 76,000 active. The MMVD has directed RTOs to take strict action against non-compliant vehicle owners, including penalties, permit suspensions, or cancellation of fitness certificates.
The state partnered with Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) to set up the control room at the Andheri RTO. The project is partly supported by the Nirbhaya Fund, created by the Union Government to enhance the safety of women in public spaces and public transport.
Officials emphasised that full compliance with VLTD installation and maintenance will significantly boost Maharashtra’s emergency response and commuter safety framework.
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