No More 'Tag-In-Hand': NHAI To Blacklist ‘Loose FASTags’ To Curb Lane Congestion

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) on Friday (11 July) announced stricter measures to identify and blacklist 'loose FASTag' users to improve tolling operations, reported Deccan Herald.

In a statement, NHAI said that some highway users deliberately avoid fixing FASTags on their vehicle windscreens, complicating the toll collection process.

"Such practices pose operational challenges leading to lane congestion, generation of false chargebacks, misuse in closed-loop tolling systems, causing overall disruption of the Electronic Toll Collection framework, resulting in unnecessary delays at toll plazas and inconvenience to other National Highway users," it said.

NHAI directed toll collecting agencies and concessionaires to report such 'loose FASTags'—also known as 'tag-in-hand'—immediately.

"To ensure smooth tolling operations and strengthen reporting of 'loose FASTags', NHAI has further streamlined its policy for the Toll Collecting Agencies and Concessionaires to immediately report and blacklist 'loose FASTags', that are also commonly called tag-in-hand," it said.

The authority has also introduced a dedicated email ID for faster reporting. "Based on the reports received, NHAI will take immediate action to initiate blacklisting/ hotlisting of the reported FASTags," it added.

NHAI emphasised the need to address this problem ahead of new initiatives like the annual pass system and Multi-Lane Free Flow (MLFF) tolling to maintain FASTag authenticity and reliability.

By enforcing these rules, NHAI aims to minimise congestion, prevent misuse, and ensure seamless travel for all highway users.

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