Chandigarh, Aug. 7 -- Even though Punjab has so far rolled out the Intelligent Traffic Management System (ITMS)-based automatic e-challan system in only three cities-Mohali, Jalandhar and Ludhiana-the state has witnessed an unprecedented surge in electronic traffic enforcement. Fuelled primarily by AI-powered surveillance in these cities, the number of e-challans issued for traffic violations has increased nearly 28-fold over the past five years. However, the rapid expansion of digital enforcement has been accompanied by a sharp rise in unpaid penalties, with outstanding e-challan dues touching Rs.159.31 crore as of July 30, 2026, according to data tabled in the Rajya Sabha. Data released by the Union ministry of road transport and highways on Wednesday shows that Punjab issued 57,892 e-challans in 2021, 53,745 in 2022 and 72,195 in 2023. The figure then jumped more than fivefold to 3.98 lakh in 2024, before soaring to 20.47 lakh in 2025 following the phased rollout of AI-based enforcement. As of July 30, 2026, the state had already issued 15.95 lakh e-challans across three cities, indicating that this year's tally is likely to approach last year's record. Punjab introduced its first AI-based Intelligent Traffic Management System (ITMS) in Mohali on March 6, 2025, making it the state's first city to adopt automated traffic enforcement. Jalandhar followed in October 2025, while Ludhiana became the third city in May 2026. Amritsar is now the next city where the technology is being rolled out. An e-challan is an electronically generated traffic violation notice that replaces the conventional paper challan. It is issued either manually via handheld devices or automatically through AI-enabled surveillance cameras under the ITMS, which can detect offences such as riding without a helmet, overspeeding, red-light jumping, wrong-side driving and triple riding. In three districts with the AI-enabled traffic enforcement system, helmet violations account for the largest share of offences. In Mohali, nearly 70% of all AI-generated e-challans were issued for riders or pillion riders not wearing helmets. Ludhiana has reported a similar trend, with helmetless riding emerging as the single biggest traffic violation detected by the ITMS. While enforcement has become stricter, recovery of penalties has failed to keep pace. Pending e-challan dues stood at Rs.7.50 crore in 2021, declined to Rs.4.56 crore in 2022, and rose marginally to Rs.5.13 crore in 2023. However, the outstanding amount increased sharply to Rs.27.97 crore in 2024, before skyrocketing to Rs.158 crore in 2025. As of July 30, 2026, unpaid penalties had climbed further to Rs.159.31 crore. Uttar Pradesh leads the country with 1.93 crore e-challans in 2025. Among neighbouring regions, Haryana issued 52.36 lakh e-challans, while Himachal Pradesh recorded 13.32 lakh and Chandigarh 8.07 lakh....