NHAI approves Video Incident Detection and Enforcement System worth Rs. 3.6 crore 

Mysore/Mysuru: With the goal of effectively curbing accidents resulting from traffic violations on the Mysuru-Bengaluru Expressway and enforcing penalties on offenders, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has given approval for the deployment of Artificial Intelligence (AI)-based Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras at six additional locations.

The NHAI has allocated Rs. 3.6 crore for the installation of these ANPR cameras. Mysuru-Kodagu MP Pratap Simmha, in a post on X (formerly Twitter), announced that the cameras are designed to capture instances of overspeeding, lane discipline violations, wrong side movements and the activities of two and three-wheelers, among other infractions.

The MP has posted a communication from the Indian Highways Management Company Limited (an initiative of NHAI) to Tecsidel India Pvt. Ltd, Gurugram, Haryana, that has been entrusted with the responsibility of providing Video Incident Detection and Enforcement System (VIDES) on the Bengaluru-Mysuru section of National Highway-275.

The quoted price of the project is Rs. 3,63,06,400, excluding GST. 

At present, the ANPR cameras, also known as Licence Plate Recognition (LPR) cameras, have been installed near Amaravathi Hotel — near Ummadahalli Gate — that is 93-km from Bengaluru. As per the NHAI plan, six more locations on the 119-km Expressway will get such cameras to catch the violators.

NHAI officials emphasised that a primary objective behind the installation of these cameras is to identify and penalise speeding violations. The cameras are equipped to capture vehicle numbers, enabling the issuance of challans to offending drivers.

Leveraging Optical Character Recognition (OCR) and advanced image processing techniques, the technology is adept at automatically interpreting vehicle registration plates. The ANPR camera is specifically designed to capture high-resolution images of licence plates, extract characters from the images, and convert them into alphanumeric data for effective enforcement of traffic regulations.

Additionally, the NHAI hopes that the installation of more such cameras will also serve as a deterrent against thefts. Officials have noted a surge in incidents where thieves exploit the situation, with reported cases of thefts involving fences, crash barriers, and lights.