Simputers designed by Encore Software Ltd enable policemen not only to punish errant drivers on the spot but also track repeat offenders. Cops can also determine if the vehicle was stolen or whether the driver had incurred any fines that were still unpaid. They then can write out a bill and print it with the help of a hand-held printer.
Simputers, connected to the Internet, give traffic policemen access to a large central database of vehicles, drivers and offences. Data can be available on more than two million cases in less than two minutes.
Traffic fine collection has doubled to Rs 72 lakh since the Simputer was introduced. Earlier, nearly 80 per cent notices sent to offenders were returned undelivered as either the address used to be wrong or the offewould have shifted base.