Kumar Bahukhandi
Gurugram-based Challanwala, an online platform for settling traffic challans, saw a sharp rise in use during its Diwali festive offer. Users checked and added 9,32,120 new challans to the platform. Between 6 and 8 November 2026, motorists paid Rs. 40.48 lakh in fines, clearing 3,250 challans across 2,440 transactions.
The offer gave users up to 70% off Challanwala’s platform fee. It also let users gift a challan payment for the first time, so they could clear a pending fine for a family member or friend as a Diwali gesture. Each transaction cleared about 1.3 challans on average, and the average payment per challan was about Rs. 1,245. Many users settled several pending fines at once, often across more than one vehicle in the family.
What the festive data shows
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Helmet-less riding is the most common violation. It accounts for 81,480 challans, more than twice the next category, parking violations (35,070). Disobeying the orders of an authority came third with 30,720. Together, these three make up nearly 1.5 lakh challans, or about 16% of all challans added during the campaign.
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Commercial vehicles lead. Of the challans with vehicle details recorded, goods carriers had the most: 16,810, or about 36%. Cars followed with 12,270 (26%), then two-wheelers with 8,770 (19%).
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Uttar Pradesh dominates, but Guwahati breaks in. Among challans that could be traced to a city, Noida had the most (19,620), followed by Ghaziabad (14,120). Together, the two NCR cities account for more than one in five traced challans. Guwahati is third with 12,440, ahead of Lucknow (10,610) and Varanasi (7,990). It is the only city outside Uttar Pradesh in the top five.
A road-safety signal;
The helmet finding goes beyond fines. According to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways’ Road Accidents in India 2023 report, 54,568 two-wheeler riders who were not wearing helmets died in road accidents that year. Overall, 41% of road accident victims were not using a helmet or seat belt.
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Mr. Arvind Singhatiya, Co-founder and CEO, Challanwala
Mr. Arvind Singhatiya, Co-founder and CEO, Challanwala, said, “Diwali is about clearing out the old before welcoming the new, and we wanted to bring that spirit to something most of us keep putting off: pending traffic challans. Over 9.3 lakh challans came to light in a single festive window, which shows how many people carry fines they don’t know about or keep postponing. With challan gifting, we wanted to offer a different kind of Diwali gift: a clean record.”
He added, “The data is also a road-safety reminder. Riding without a helmet tops the list by a wide margin, and that is not just a fine. It is a risk to life. We hope that settling a challan also prompts people to change the behaviour behind it. Given the response, we are extending the offer until New Year, so more families can start 2027 without pending challans.”
About Challanwala
Challanwala is a Gurugram-based start up platform that lets vehicle owners check, settle and resolve traffic challans online. Founded in December 2023, the platform offers vehicle insurance, pre-owned vehicle history reports, PUC (pollution) certificate services and vehicle service records, so owners can manage their vehicle’s paperwork in one place.
