The Transport department will not start imposing penalties on those vehicle operators for now who are yet to install vehicle location tracking devices (VLTDs). Thousands of pilgrims are arriving in the State daily and using services of commercial vehicles to visit Char Dham shrines and the department does not want to create panic at this stage among pilgrims as well as vehicle operators, said the regional transport officer (administration) of Dehradun division Sunil Sharma. He told The Pioneer that the department had directed the vehicle operators on April 13 to install VLTDs by May 31 that help in tracking the movement of the vehicles, ensure passengers’ safety as well help provide immediate help in case of accidents. He said that all new vehicles bought after the year 2019 came with installed VLTD so all vehicles bought before 2019 were directed to mandatorily install the device. He said, "The department last year issued nearly 20,305 green cards to vehicle operators to operate on Char Dham routes but this year, we have already issued about 21,000 green cards. The number is expected to increase in the next few weeks. Considering such conditions, we have decided not to start imposing penalties on vehicle operators for now.”

He said, “Many operators are installing the devices but to ensure others do it too without creating panic at the present time, the transport department will check the status of installation of VLTDs before issuing green cards to vehicle operators interested to operate on Char Dham routes. The officials concerned will let them know the advantages of VLTD installation and ask them if they are facing any issue in the installation or have any objection regarding the installation to provide the necessary help.”