New Delhi, July 13: The FAStag details will now be compulsory for vehicle registration across India, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways said. This new order is now applicable across the country. The Ministry further added saying that the government has now linked FASTags with VAHAN, the online national vehicle registration system. Reports inform that the government has completed an integration process between the electronic toll system and the vehicle registration portal to make sure that FASTags don't become redundant. Enter FASTag Lane at Highway Toll Booth Only if Eligible, Else Pay Double The Amount.

The VAHAN system is now getting all information on FASTags through VIN/VRN (vehicle identification number/ vehicle registration number), it added. So far, as many as 1.7 crore FASTags are sold across India. The Ministry has written to the states and UTs saying that full integration of National Electronic Toll Collection (NETC) with VAHAN portal has been achieved. According to a press statement issued on Sunday, the Ministry has urged States/UTs to ensure the synchronisation of the two portals is implemented effectively to avoid any hassle.

With the new order in place, people will no longer have to worry about updating the  vehicle’s registration number with your FASTag device as this will be automatically done. This means the VAHAN portal can now get all the information on FASTags via vehicles' VIN/VRN. This is because the request to ensure FASTag details are captured while registering new vehicles or issuing fitness certificates to vehicles plying under national permit henceforth.

Earlier this month, the Ministry had asked the National Informatics Centre (NIC) to ensure details of the electronic toll collection device are captured on VAHAN, when new vehicles are registered and fitness certificates issued to vehicles for national permits.

The fitment of FASTag in new vehicles at the time of sales of vehicles of category M and N, was made mandatory in 2017. The FASTag is a prepaid tag that is fixed on the vehicle's windscreen. It  employs radio frequency identification (RFID) technology for making toll payments on national highways directly from the prepaid or savings account linked to it. This enables automatic deduction of toll charges and lets the vehicle pass through the toll plaza without stopping for the cash transaction.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 13, 2020 11:59 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).