BHUBANESWAR: The Vehicle Location Tracking Device Manufacturers’ Association of India (VLTDMAI) has cautioned the Odisha government against any proposed change in the back-end software and operating framework of the AIS-140 vehicle tracking system without continuity or explicit allocation of transition costs.
The association warned that such a move could disrupt public safety services and impose an estimated Rs 14 crore burden on citizens, transporters and compliant manufacturers.
In a representation to the principal secretary of Commerce and Transport Usha Padhee, the association said nearly 69,000 AIS-140 compliant vehicle location tracking devices are now operational across the state under the existing ‘Mo Yatra Suraksha’ platform.
These devices, supplied by over 35 approved manufacturers, have been integrated with panic buttons, emergency alerts, VAHAN activation, enforcement dashboards, command-and-control centres and citizen mobile applications and are being actively used by government departments, transport operators and the general public.
The industry body maintained that the system is functioning successfully, barring limited downtime linked to NIC cloud migration and that there is no recorded technical failure, safety lapse or regulatory non-compliance that justifies the proposed change to the back-end framework.
It argued that any alteration to the AIS-140 back-end is not a simple server exercise but would require large-scale physical intervention. Reconfiguring around 69,000 vehicles would involve technicians visiting vehicles across Odisha, with each reconfiguration taking six to 10 hours depending on vehicle availability and network connectivity.
The process would require devices to be switched off, reconfigured and re-integrated, temporarily defeating the purpose of live tracking and emergency response. Factoring in issues such as vehicles being out of service areas, network limitations and integration errors, the association estimated that a full transition would take 12 to 16 months even at an average pace of 3,000 to 4,000 vehicles per month.
Emphasising that AIS-140 systems have been designed for emergency response and passenger safety, VLTDMAI urged the state government to either continue with the existing back-end framework or, if a change is needed, issue an order ensuring that all costs will be borne through government funding and implemented through a time-bound and risk-mitigated transition plan.