New Delhi: The Supreme Court has directed the Centre and states to interlink key government and insurance databases, including VAHAN, SARATHI, the Electronic Detailed Accident Report (eDAR) portal, and the Insurance Information Bureau (IIB), within four weeks, to streamline motor accident claim processing and ensure seamless sharing of accident-related information.
A bench of Justices Ahsanuddin Amanullah and Prasanna B. Varale directed all states to ensure that accident-related data is uploaded on the eDAR portal, operated by the National Informatics Centre (NIC), without delay, observing that only a few states had started uploading data despite the portal being operational.
The apex court ordered that eDAR be linked with the IIB, which functions under the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI), and directed the interlinking of the VAHAN, SARATHI, eDAR, and IIB databases for seamless cross-referencing of accident reports, vehicle and insurer records, and previous claim histories.
The integration is also to extend to hit-and-run cases and the PM-RAHAT scheme, enabling early accident alerts to be sent directly to insurers.
The Supreme Court directed the Centre and states to complete the integration “within four weeks from today positively” and file compliance reports, along with details sought in its previous orders, through affidavits.
The directions came as the top court examined compliance by several insurance companies with its earlier orders requiring their senior officials to appear personally and explain their failure to enter appearance in the proceedings.
During the proceedings, the Justice Amanullah-led Bench also took a stern view of several insurance companies failing to comply with its directions regarding appearance and submission of affidavits, issuing contempt notices to the chief executives of certain insurers.
Rejecting an apology furnished by Navi General Insurance Ltd. Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Vaibhav Goyal, the Supreme Court described it as “only cosmetic and not heartfelt”, observing that no action had been taken against the person responsible for failing to process the apex court’s notice.
It issued a contempt notice to Goyal, directing him to file a personal affidavit explaining why appropriate action should not be taken against him.
The Supreme Court further granted a final opportunity to states that had not constituted Special Investigation Teams (SITs) in accordance with its earlier orders to do so within four weeks. The matter has been listed for further hearing on November 27 at 2 p.m.
(IANS)
