Last updated: October 2026
To check an AI camera fine in Kerala, open the Parivahan e-challan service at echallan.parivahan.gov.in, search by your vehicle registration number, challan number, or driving licence number, complete the captcha, and click Get Detail. You will see every pending and paid challan on the vehicle, including the offence, date, location, photo evidence, and the amount to pay. The Kerala Police payment service offers the same search by vehicle number, and challans that have moved to court appear on the Virtual Courts portal. Camera fines carry the same official amounts as any other challan: Rs.500 each for helmet and seat belt offences, Rs.2,000 for handheld phone use, and Rs.1,500 for a first speeding offence on a light motor vehicle.
The Safe Kerala project installed 726 AI cameras across the state. At launch, 675 of them were configured to detect helmet and seat belt violations and only four for speeding, with 692 set to impose fines when enforcement began. The cameras automatically flag riding without a helmet, driving without a seat belt, triple riding, handheld phone use, red-light and signal violations, and no-parking offences.
Two practical consequences follow. First, the system issues separate challans for each person: if the driver and the front passenger are both unbelted, the camera issues two challans, because the seat belt fine applies per person. Second, notices can arrive late. The camera network faced service interruptions in 2026 when internet service to the cameras lapsed over unpaid service bills; after it was restored, notices were expected for violations recorded during the gap. Central rules require an electronic notice of offence to be sent within fifteen days of the offence, so compare the offence date on your challan with the day you received it. Camera challans are sent to the mobile number registered against the vehicle, so keep that number current on Parivahan.
Kerala compounds several Motor Vehicles Act fines below the Act's own penalty, including the helmet and seat belt fines, which the state's cabinet cut from Rs.1,000 to Rs.500. These amounts were checked against a current Kerala compounding schedule on 30 September 2026. The amount printed on your challan is final, so confirm it before paying:
| Offence (AI-camera detected) | Section | Kerala compounded amount |
|---|---|---|
| Riding without a helmet, rider or pillion | 194D | Rs.500 per person |
| Driving or sitting in front without a seat belt | 194B(1) | Rs.500 per person |
| Triple riding | 194C | Rs.1,000 |
| Using a handheld phone while driving | 184 | Rs.2,000 |
| Overspeeding, light motor vehicle | 183(1) | Rs.1,500 first; Rs.3,000 on repeat |
What I could not verify: a Kerala compounded amount for red-light jumping, which sources disagree on, so I left it out of this table rather than guessing. Older news reports mention Rs.1,000 helmet fines from the cameras' early days; what matters is the figure printed on your challan. Verify all fees on parivahan.gov.in before paying.
Challans that move to court appear on the Virtual Courts portal, where Kerala Police directs users to check and pay them:
An unpaid Kerala challan is commonly reported to stay payable on the portal for 60 days from the date of issue. If it is not cleared in that period, it can be forwarded to a virtual court for further action. A newer central procedure (Central Motor Vehicles Rule 167, rewritten with effect from 21 January 2026) sets a different clock: 45 days to pay or contest the challan on the portal with evidence, then 30 days to pay once it is accepted. I could not find a Kerala notification putting this timeline into effect, so treat the dates printed on your own challan as the authority and do not let the window lapse.
Unpaid challans can also attract licence consequences. Kerala's Transport Commissionerate issued Circular 18/2026 in June 2026, grading licence suspension and correctional training by offence; as reported, helmet offences under Sections 194C and 194D bring at least a three-month suspension and a one-day session. In October 2026 the Supreme Court tightened recovery further, with unpaid challans able to block RC, PUC, and driving licence renewal services. Our driving licence renewal guide covers the renewal process these restrictions can interrupt, and the e-challan payment steps show the standard payment route.
Camera challans live or die by their photograph. Open it and check whether the plate was misread, whether the vehicle is actually yours, and whether the offence happened as described. If the challan is wrong, use the Complaint tab on the Parivahan e-challan portal: enter the required details, describe the issue, attach documents or the image, and track the ticket number that is sent to your mobile. Contest within the window printed on the challan.
Phishing warning: do not pay from a link that arrived by SMS or a messaging app. Traffic-challan phishing is common. Open echallan.parivahan.gov.in or payment.keralapolice.gov.in yourself and verify the challan before entering card, UPI, or banking details.
The challan shows the offence, date, time, and location, and camera-issued challans carry a photograph of the violation.
Yes. Challans go to the mobile number registered against the vehicle, which may be outdated, and notices have arrived late during the network's service interruptions. Check your registration number on Parivahan periodically; unawareness does not stop the payment window.
Camera challans are raised against the registration number, not the rider, so they land on whoever is named on the RC record. Until the transfer is processed, that is the seller. This is why completing the ownership transfer within fourteen days of the sale matters; our RC transfer guide explains the seller's risk in detail.
Under Circular 18/2026, as reported, helmet and pillion offences bring at least a three-month suspension plus a one-day training session, and speeding brings at least three months with three days of classes. Ask your RTO how the circular applies to your case.
The commonly reported window is 60 days from the date of issue on the portal, after which the challan can be forwarded to a virtual court. A challan that is not settled does not lapse or get written off; it is escalated. The exact deadline on your challan is the one that governs your case.
Fees and rules change without notice. Verify all fees and rules on parivahan.gov.in before applying. This guide reflects the Kerala AI camera challan process as documented in October 2026.
Keralam Transport