AI governance begin? |
Over the past few weeks, social media in Pakistan has exploded with frustration. Drivers across Lahore and Karachi have been posting screenshots of unexpected challans, debating wrongful fines, sharing blurry images captured by traffic cameras and asking the same question, "How did I get this ticket?" Some report receiving multiple challans at once, while others argue the system is unfair, confusing or technologically flawed.
Albeit underneath this noise lies something far more important. Has Pakistan just launched its first real test case of AI-driven governance? The public's reaction exposes deep anxieties about automation, fairness and trust in public institutions. This is not merely a story about traffic challans; it marks the beginning of a new time, one where algorithms make the first decision in enforcement, and where citizens become visible through data. And people of Pakistan are not ready for what this means.
The camera-based e-Challan systems in Lahore, under the Punjab Safe Cities Authority, and in Karachi, under the new Faceless E-Challan System, rely on Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR). This is an AI-powered technology that detects pre-defined violations, reads number plates, cross-checks registries........