Safe Kerala Project: Keltron may demand more fees for running AI camera system

Thiruvananthapuram: Even as Keltron is trying to fend off charges of inflated costs over the Safe Kerala Project it may demand more fees for offering the Facility Management Service as well. Reports say the state entity grossly exaggerated the acquisition and installation cost of the Artificial Intelligence cameras that have been put up for surveillance of road traffic in Kerala.

The Keltron is required to pay up Rs 66 crore for a period of five years as Facility Management Service for the continued operation of the AI camera project. The cost of despatching challans or receipts to traffic offenders, denoting the fines, has been worked out to be Rs 5.90 crore every year.

A further split up of this estimate suggested that the Keltron counts on sending at least 25 lakh challans every year and the cost of dispatch of a single challan is pegged at Rs 20. The number of traffic rule violations in the first few days of launching the camera network, however, stood respectively at 4,50,552; 3,97,487; 2,68,378; 2,90,000; 2,37,000 and 2,39000.

Going by these numbers, the average number of offenses registered per day stands around two lakhs and the total violations to be recorded per year are slated to touch Rs 7.3 crore. If the number of challans to be despatched exceeds the ceiling of 25 lakhs per year, Keltron will be demanding more amount as the fee for Facility Management Service.

Govt to pay Rs 11.61 crore as July Instalment
As per the deal, the State Government is required to pay the first installment of Rs 11.61 crore in July as fees for implementing the AI camera project. The fees have to be paid every three months.

Though the authorities earlier decided to launch the project from April 19 onwards, the same was postponed by another month in the face of strong public protest. The camera network and the control rooms remain operational even during this intervening period when the authorities ran a public awareness drive and spared fines for traffic offenders. The authorities are required to pay the first installment of the fees by taking into account the cost of operations during this period as well.

Of the total amount to be paid as the first installment, the SRIT, which won the contract from Keltron, will get Rs 7.56 crore while Rs 34.5 lakh will go towards the cost of equipment distributed by Keltron. The first installment of the consultancy charge is pegged at Rs 38.84 lakh, while that of the Facility Management Service by Keltron is Rs 3.31 crore.

Imposition of fines: MVD order awaited
Keltron, meanwhile, is awaiting an order by the Motor Vehicles Department (MVD) to start imposing fines on traffic rule violators. As many as 70 persons have been recruited to the control rooms on a contract basis and another batch of 76 persons is slated to join soon. The plan is to recruit Kudumbashree members who have expertise in this area.