RFID tags mandatory for commercial vehicles after three weeks: SDMC

New Delhi : Only those commercial vehicles that have radio-frequency identification tags (RFID) will be allowed to enter the national capital after three weeks, officials said on Friday.

With the RFID system coming into force at 13 busy border points from Friday midnight, non-RFID vehicles will have to pay penalties in order to enter the city. After three weeks, such vehicles will not be allowed to enter the city, they said.

The 13 entry points receive 85 per cent of the incoming traffic in Delhi. Once a person buys an RFID tag and pastes it on his registered vehicle, the environment compensation charge will be deducted at the 13 toll plazas automatically.

"After the Friday midnight deadline, non-RFID vehicles will have to pay twice the basic amount of environment compensation charge in the first week. It will become four times in the second week and six times in the third," Additional Commissioner of South Delhi Municipal Corporation Randhir Sahay said.

"After three weeks, entry of commercial vehicle will be completely on the basis of RFID tags," he added. Sale of such tags will continue at the points of sale installed at the 13 RFID toll plazas.

Additional six points have been set up in satellite towns of Uttar Pradesh and Haryana. Posters and banners have been put up and public announcements are being made at several locations to inform the vehicle owners about the decision, officials said.

Till Friday afternoon, 1.6 lakh RFID tags have been sold. The RFID system will help smoothen the traffic movement and bring down pollution levels, the officials said. "Currently, it takes 15-20 seconds for a vehicle to cross a toll plaza. With the RFID infrastructure in place, it will take only 4-5 seconds," said Aakash Sinha of Tecsidel India Pvt Limited which is carrying out the RFID installation work.

The SDMC has also come up with a mobile application, "MCD TOLL", to make recharge of RFID tags hassle-free. Around 300 cameras have been installed at different spots at the 13 RFID toll plazas that will live stream videos to a control room set up in Mochi Bhag.