People traveling on the National Highway can get great relief in toll tax. Recently, the Jammu and Kashmir High Court directed the National Highways Authority of India to reduce toll tax if the road is broken. Instructions have been given to reduce toll tax by 80 percent on two toll plazas on National Highway 44. The Jammu and Kashmir High Court said that the toll tax cut should continue till the road construction work is completed.
Millions of people get big relief in toll tax
The Jammu and Kashmir High Court had directed that toll tax should be reduced when the road is broken. This decision of the High Court is going to provide great relief to the devotees and other pilgrims going to Mata Vaishno Devi temple. This decision of the court will benefit millions of people passing daily from National Highway 44. On two toll plazas located on National Highway 44, toll tax will be availed for 80 percent discount.
Order to recover only 20 percent toll
A bench of Chief Justice Tashi Rabstan and Justice MA Chaudhary, while hearing a PIL, ordered NHAI to collect only 20 percent toll from people at Lakhanpur and Bann Toll Plaza. This notification is applicable with immediate effect and will remain in force on the national highway till the completion of road construction work. Not only this, the Jammu and Kashmir High Court has directed not to make any toll plaza within a radius of 60 km of National Highway 44. Instructions have been given to remove such toll plazas within two months in union territories like Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
Jammu and Kashmir High Court order
- The toll fee at Lakhanpur Toll Plaza and Bann Toll Plaza will be 20% of the rate implemented before 26.01.2024 until all facilities are provided to fully publicize the national highway from Lakhanpur to Udhampur. The respondents should collect full toll on both these toll plazas only when a certificate is issued by an independent surveyor in this regard.
- No toll should be applied within 60 km of National Highway-44. In addition, if there is a toll plaza within 60 km of the national highway in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir or Union Territory Ladakh, the defendants will remove it within two months from today. Apart from this, the sole purpose of setting up toll plaza in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir and Union Territory Ladakh should not be the only purpose of money from the common people.
- Ban toll plazas are charging heavy toll charges, while other toll plazas are also charging high toll charges. Thus, not only the treasure of NHAI is filling for thousands of crores of rupees, but private contractors are also making themselves rich by depositing crores of rupees. The toll fee should be appropriate for the common people and should not be the source of revenue creation system.
- Toll plaza contractors have been instructed not to keep any criminal background person on the toll plaza.
Who filed the application?
Sugandha Sahni filed a public interest litigation demanding exemption from toll collection on Lakhanpur, Gold Khui and Bann Plaza on NH-44, which argued that from December 2021, despite being under construction 60 to 70 percent of the highway from December 2021, the toll tax collection is going on by violating the rules. The Delhi-Amritsar-Katra Expressway is fully operational for the easy use of the people from the cold Khui toll plaza and Bann Toll Plaza, Nagrota, Pathankot to Pathankot, Pathankot.
