In a bid to enhance road safety and streamline enforcement services, the Manipur government’s Transport Department has floated a tender for the creation of a Vehicle Tracking Platform. However, in response to this MoRTH guideline, the Manipur State Cabinet has selected the MANITRON as an Implementing Agency in June 2021.
In Manipur, the VTS funds have already been sanctioned, yet the scheme has not started yet. What is the misunderstanding between the Transport Department and the Implementing Agency, MANITRON that led to the delay of the Centrally sponsored scheme and the issue of a fresh Tender for the “lmplementation of “Development, Customization, Deployment and Management of State-wise vehicle tracking platform for Safety & Enforcement as per AIS 140 Specifications “, in State of Manipur under Nirbhaya Framework?”
There was a news report that before the appointment of the MANITRON as the Implementing Agency in June 2021, the previous Joint Director of Transport Department on behalf of the Govt of Manipur inked an MOU with the DIMTS, Delhi appointing DIMTS as Project consultancy services (PMC) for the project vide its letter no. 14/1/2020 – T(MV) dated 18th August 2020.
The Tender value of Rs 10.40 crore includes the development, customization, deployment, and management of hardware and software components. These include video walls, computers, network laser printers, switches, server infrastructure, firewalls, UPS, CCTV with NVR, and control room renovation items. The project also involves the installation of a call manager and IVR to route calls to stakeholders, LAN wiring for an 800 sq ft MCC, a fire alarm system, rodent repellent, a fire detection and suppressant system, and air conditioning. The software component includes the AIS140 solution and additional requirements as mentioned in Vol. II of RFP. The project also includes the hiring of a project manager, monitoring centre operators, system admin, L1 & L2 support, and capacity-building services. The system will be hosted on an internet lease line with a backup internet link and telephone line (EPBX).
MoRTH issued a guideline on 15th January 2020. Under this guideline, the Delhi Integrated Multi-Modal Transit System (DIMTS), Delhi was appointed as the National Project Management Unit (PMU) for the “Development, Customization, Deployment and Management of State-wise vehicle tracking platform for Safety and Enforcement as per AIS 140 Specifications”, in States and UTs.
The guideline also directed the concerned State and UT govt to appoint (a) Its own Implementing Agency to design, develop and deploy a Monitoring Centre, and (b) Its own Project Management Consultant (PMC) or use the DIMTS to provide state-level PMC services. However, the cost of appointment of DIMTS as the state PMC shall be borne by the State government.
This platform will facilitate real-time monitoring of public service vehicles and act as a hub for various government departments, including the State Emergency Response Support System, Regional Transport Offices (RTOs), Ministry of Road, Transport and Highways (MoRTH), and law enforcement agencies.
This initiative aligns with a 2018 notification from the MoRTH under the Central Motor Vehicle Rules, 1989, which mandated the installation of a vehicle location tracking device and emergency buttons in public service vehicles.
The tender details the responsibilities of the implementing agency, which include:
- The design, deployment, and integration of a vehicle tracking platform to monitor vehicles within the system.
- The installation, integration, and commissioning of the Monitoring Centre infrastructure.
- The creation, deployment, and integration of mobile applications for various users.
- The installation, integration, and commissioning of a Geographic Information System (GIS) Map for the vehicle tracking platform.
- Hosting the system on the National Informatics Centre (NIC) Cloud for the first two years post-launch.
- Transitioning the system to the NIC Cloud/ State Data Centre/ MeiTY empanelled Cloud after the initial two years.
- Integrating with various transport-related systems such as VAHAN, Permit, and Enforcement systems.
- Collaborating with the police Emergency Response Support System (ERSS) to relay emergency alerts captured by the system.
- Integrating with the iRAD system, a comprehensive road accident database, to share data for various purposes such as investigation, road engineering, and vehicle condition assessment.