
'Unfair for commuters to pay tolls on poorly maintained highways': HC orders NHAI to cut toll fee by 80%
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NHAI Ordered to Collect Only 20% Toll
A bench comprising Chief Justice Tashi Rabstan and Justice M A Choudhary, while hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) regarding the Pathankot-Udhampur stretch, ordered the NHAI to collect only 20% of the toll at Lakhanpur and Bann plazas. The directive is effective immediately and will remain until the highway is fully operational for public use.
Restrictions on Toll Plaza Establishment
The court also ruled that no toll plaza should be established within 60 km of NH-44. Additionally, it instructed the removal of such plazas within two months in the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. The court observed, “Further, there should not be mushrooming of toll plazas in the UT of J&K and the UT of Ladakh only with the sole aim and objective of minting money from the general public.”
Petitioner Highlights Poor Road Conditions
The PIL was filed by Sugandha Sawhney, seeking exemption from toll collection at Lakhanpur, Thandi Khui, and Bann plazas on NH-44. She argued that despite 60% to 70% of the highway being under construction since December 2021, toll collection continued in violation of regulations. The rules state that toll collection should begin only within 45 days of project completion. The petition also highlighted severe hurdles and diversions along the route. The toll collection at Thandi
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