Jaipur, November 1. The previous government decision to exempt toll charges on private vehicles on state highways in the state was a hasty decision that affected the maintenance of roads in the state. The state cabinet has decided to withdraw the exemption of toll charges in the view of public interest and massive liability on the state exchequer.
The primary purpose of imposing toll charges on roads was to strengthen the roads and, thereafter, ensure the maintenance. The previous state government had exempted private vehicles from toll charges on 55 state highways from April 1, 2018, because of which state suffered a loss of rupees 172 crores in the base year 2017-2018. It adversely affected the repair, maintenance, and construction of roads in the state. As per the contract conditions, no repair work is done by the contractor, and the violation of terms of the contract and, this ultimately leads to people to suffer.
There is a contract between the government and toll concessionaire regarding toll charges. The previous government took such an arbitrary unilateral decision in the election year, without their consent and without paying any compensation to the toll collection companies. For this reason, the toll collectors went to the court against the government for violating contract terms for the road project. They have demanded to compensate the toll amount as well as pay the interest. In such a situation, it is likely the state government will have to bear a double financial burden.
Add Comment