E-Way Bill Validity

Validity runs on a distance clock rather than a fixed number of days. For regular cargo the widely applied basis is one day per 200 km or part thereof; for over-dimensional cargo the allowance is far shorter, at one day per 20 km. The clock starts when Part-B is first entered, not when Part-A is created.

A 'day' here means a period ending at midnight of the following day, which is a common source of confusion. The practical effect is that a bill generated in the evening can lose most of its first day before the truck has left the yard.

Extension is possible where the consignment genuinely cannot be delivered in time — a breakdown, a natural calamity, a long queue at the consignee — but only within a limited window around expiry. Miss the window and the only option is a fresh bill, which is difficult to justify for goods already in transit. This is precisely the case for automating pre-expiry alerts.