Residents living around 20km of Ghamroj toll plaza to get discount passes

Even before the Ghamroj toll plaza was put up in the area on April 1, the locals protested the move and held a mahapanchyat in March, and subsequently organised several other meetings, which led to a larger protest on April 18

People residing within 20 kilometres of Ghamroj toll plaza will get a discount on the toll pass for using the Sohna elevated road, provided they have local Aadhaar cards and registered the vehicles in their names, said the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) officials on Tuesday.

The directive follows a meeting on Tuesday between the officials of NHAI and members of a social group — Toll Hatao Sangharsh Samiti (THSS) — in Delhi, which was chaired by Haryana deputy chief minister Dushyant Chautala. (Sourced)

This comes following a meeting on Tuesday between the officials of NHAI and members of a social group — Toll Hatao Sangharsh Samiti (THSS) — in Delhi, which was chaired by Haryana deputy chief minister Dushyant Chautala. The meeting was held after the residents of 30 villages along the Sohna Road and Sohna town protested against the authorities, demanding that either the toll plaza be moved from there or the people living around 20-km of the toll plaza be exempted of the toll amount.

Even before the Ghamroj toll plaza was put up in the area on April 1, the locals protested the move and held a mahapanchyat in March, and subsequently organised several other meetings, which led to a larger protest on April 18. They have been alleging that commuting has become difficult since the opening of the toll plaza, and they also have to spend the toll amount.

Speaking to the media following the meeting, Chautala said that the officials discussed “how to ensure an easy commute for the locals, and that the discount on toll passes were made available to the residents at the earliest. “It has been decided that as per the new NHAI norms, the toll operator will give a discount on toll passes to all the eligible residents, who live within 20-km of the toll plaza, for ₹315 per month. A three-member team comprising the officials of NHAI and Public Works Department (PWD) will also inspect the road on Wednesday, and take stock of the construction works,” Chautala said.

The NHAI officials, meanwhile, said that while there was no question of toll exemption for anyone as per the 2008 NHAI rules, they will give the discount passes to all the eligible residents. “We have asked the toll operator to make these discount passes available at the earliest. At present, a person can make 50 trips for ₹315 in one month with the help of a discount pass. We have also decided to appoint two NHAI staffers at the toll, to ensure the availability of these passes and resolve issues immediately,” said PK Kaushik, project director of NHAI, adding that he has also shared his contact details with the samiti so that the members can reach out to him whenever needed.

The members of Toll Hatao Sangarsh Samiti said that this Ghamroj toll plaza has been made operational despite the fact that Sohna elevated road project was not complete and in order to maximise the revenue the NHAI had set up in the middle of the highway instead of it being at either end. “The discount pass for local residents are fine but our main contention is that the service road should atleast be kept free for the local residents who have to travel locally and for farming and allied purposes. We have relatives, farms, houses, business on both side of the road and this toll plaza and road has divided us in to parts,” said Satbir Khatana, who heads the Samiti.

The Samiti also said that they have also demanded that status of road construction should be checked to verify if operation of toll was legal and justifiable at this point of time.

Kaushik said that the three member committee will assess the road construction on Wednesday. “We are building this road in two phases and phase two comprising of 13 km is completed and user fees for only that stretch is being charged. When the first stage from Rajiv Chowk to Badhsahpur is completed then the user fee will be added to the toll,” said Kaushik.