Towing Van Big Business For Private Contractors

Afternoon Voice

In last few years it is been noticed that Mumbai has become a city with a very huge traffic, where not only car but bike parking space’s across Mumbai is limited. Every car owner or a bike owner have paid fine for at least once in their lifetime for their towed vehicles. And every individual who has gone through this thinks that  the amount payed by them to the traffic department later goes to the government reserve. But very few know that more than 50% of their paid fine goes in the pocket of private contractors who are very limited in numbers.

According to the recent RTI given to Afternoon Voice (AV) by Chetan Pednekar which shows the difference in the amount earned by the private contractors (owner of towing vans) and the whole traffic department varies by 2/3rd of the total amount. In last five years the amount collected by the private contractors is Rs 23 Crore 94 lakhs whereas traffic department has received Rs 16 Crore only. “Why there is a such a huge amount of disparity in traffic department even after providing premises and many traffic officers are allotted behind towing works, why there is such a huge difference in amount?” asks Chetan. Moreover DCP Nand Kumar Chogley of traffic department said to AV that “the reason there is a difference i the amount is because whenever a car is towed the traffic department gets Rs 100 and Contractors are paid Rs 200, whereas in the case of two wheelers both of the department receives same amount which is Rs 100”.

All over Mumbai there are 59 towing vans according to the RTI and every day several vehicles are been towed by these towing vans. “Even if an influential person is paying Rs 100 this amount which is collected by the department is given to the private contractors, and many times when someone bribes the traffic constable by paying Rs 150 then also the contractors are never in loss, it is only traffic department which is in loss” says Chetan. “Moreover traffic department has to agree that this minimum amount of corruption of leaving vehicles of influential persons by just fining them the towing charges, or bribe of Rs 50 has made a difference of almost 8 crores between the private contractors and the traffic revenue in last 5 years” says Salim Shaikh an activist.

Accusing traffic department of Mumbai Chetan said “towing vans which are been owned by these private contractors are either relatives of police officers in traffic department or are family friends that is why they are been flourishing day by day and their contract is been renewed every year”. When AV spoke to Alqama Qureshi town planner and architect he said “it’s just a matter of 59 towing vans if government can plan to buy these vans which will cost sum of Rs 5 Crore after which the generated revenue will go to the government, and will further strengthen our traffic department economically as well”. DCP Nandkumar Chogley said “we have planned such issues and also we have sent request to our superiors also to come up with a proper plan which is good for public as well as the traffic department.”