Bhubaneswar, Dec 15 : The Command & Control Centre for Vehicle Location Tracking Device (AIS-140) for tracking public transport vehicles and goods vehicles was inaugurated on Friday.
The 24X7 integrated Command & Control centre located at Bhubaneswar-II RTO new office building will use both Global Positioning System (GPS)-based vehicle tracking and the GSM/GPRS channel for triggering emergency alerts.
The common emergency toll lines, motor vehicle wing, the police control room, and related enforcement units will be looped into a real-time data sharing network, with the command control center functioning as an interface for stakeholder agencies.
A mobile application has also been developed for various stakeholders and users, as has a Geographic Information System (GIS) map for vehicle location tracking systems.
Under the Nirbhaya Scheme for women’s safety, the Central Government has made vehicle location tracking mandatory for public transport vehicles and goods vehicles.
Accordingly, an amendment has been made to the Central Motor Vehicle Rule 1989 for the mandatory fitment of VLT devices in all public transport vehicles.
In order to standardize devices throughout the country, the AIS-140 Standard has been prescribed. The state government, in compliance with the above amendment and direction, is implementing the VLT application.
State Commerce and Transport Minister Tukuni Sahu, who inaugurated the center, said,” the objective of the project is to introduce a tracking system as required for the implementation of central notifications for continuous monitoring of public transport vehicles for the safety of passengers, especially women, better road safety, and better support for enforcement services.This will also help in keeping track of public buses running as per the permit.”
Principal Secretary, Commerce & Transport, Usha Padhee, said the State Transport Authority, Govt. of Odisha, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) for the development, management, and operation of the Vehicle Location Tracking (VLT) application.
BSNL has developed, deployed, integrated, and commissioned a vehicle location tracking software backend application named “Mo Yatra Suraksha” for tracking and monitoring of vehicles covered under the project.
The state had published the standard operating procedure (SOP) for the empanelment of these manufacturers.
As of now, 6 VLTD manufacturers have been registered in the state, and 11 VLTD manufacturers have successfully completed their testing in the state backend.
Accordingly, these empaneled manufacturers have started affixing the VLTD devices to both new and old vehicles. The vehicle owners have the liberty to choose and affix VLTD devices from the empaneled VLTD manufacturers, which are available on the website www.odishatransport.gov.in.
Except for autorickshaws and e-rickshaws, all passenger transport vehicles, including both government and private buses, school and college buses, and cabs and taxis, will be equipped with VLT panic buttons for the safety of women and children.
All goods vehicles operating under the strength of the National Permit and all goods vehicles transporting explosive and hazardous materials have to install VLT devices.
The specified vehicles registered on or after January 1, 2024, shall have to comply with the requirement at the time of registration.
The specified vehicles registered on or before December 31, 2023 shall have to comply with the requirement by June 30, 2024, official sources said.
