The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) denies establishing a set deadline for launching satellite-based toll collection across India. The information that the new toll system will take over FASTag starting May 1, 2025, proves untrue. The official statement from the ministry addresses the baseless reports about a nationwide satellite-based toll system.
The statement emerged during an intensified national discussion about implementing satellite toll technology across India. The government has shown progress through pilot programs and constrained launch initiatives, yet it has not officially unveiled any target date for full-scale implementation across the nation.
The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has confirmed that satellite-based tolling will not be implemented across India, starting from May 1, 2025. Multiple media outlets reported on the upcoming release of the new system, prompting the ministry to address the claims.
Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari announced that the GNSS-based tolling system would launch by the end of April 2025. This announcement sparked assumptions that FASTag would be discontinued from its current operations in May 2025. However, the ministry has announced that FASTag-based toll collection operations will keep running without any specified replacement date.
Due to ongoing testing and phased implementation, officials declared that the GNSS-based system continues operations for satellite positioning distance charging of vehicles. The existing systems need further improvement alongside full user preparedness for a nationwide adoption of this new infrastructure.
As satellite tolling across the country continues to develop, the existing barrierless tolling system will be removed, but select toll plazas will implement an alternative setup. The updated system connects Automatic Number Plate Recognition technology to FASTag systems that are already in operation.
Drivers can use ANPR-FASTag-based barrier-less tolling to drive through toll plazas without stopping. License plates will be read through advanced cameras, and FASTag toll deduction operations will be handled by RFID-based readers. Developed as a dual system, it addresses both traffic jams and increases efficiency at toll gates. A request to submit proposals runs through NHAI for installing this system at specific toll locations.
This project represents a part of an overall structure that seeks to implement advanced toll collection systems to downsize operational expenses and decrease traffic delay times. The system detects both vehicles through their number plates and FASTag credentials. Violators who fail to pay toll charges because of noncompliance will receive electronic notifications. Multiple toll violations will result in account suspension through the FASTag system, together with potential VAHAN-based penalties for vehicles.