Snarl at border as commercial vehicles not permitted to pay toll in cash

Heavy congestion was witnessed at the Sirhaul border on the Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway on Wednesday morning as the concessionaire of the South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) allowed commercial vehicles entering Delhi to pay toll only using FASTags. The situation normalised around noon after the norms were relaxed and drivers were allowed to make payments in cash.

The Gurugram traffic police said they were informed of the congestion around 9.30am and personnel were deployed to manage the situation. However, commuters said that the vehicles piled up from the border up to Iffco Chowk for three hours.

An order issued by Hemant Kumar Fauzdar, additional deputy commissioner (toll tax), SDMC, on July 1, stated that the Supreme Court and Commission for Air Quality Monitoring have directed a cashless collection of environment compensation cess (ECC) and toll for specified commercial vehicles entering Delhi. “It has also been directed that commercial vehicles without RFID tags and sufficient recharge be not permitted to enter Delhi from July 1,” the order stated.

Naresh Kumar, a truck driver who was stopped from entering Delhi, said, “If the truck is loaded, the fee is ₹2,600 but if the truck is empty, only ₹1,200 has to be paid. However, the RFID tags don’t differentiate this.”

A senior official of Sahakar Global Ltd- JV, the concessionaire for SDMC, said, “We tried to ensure the RFID tags are read quickly and those who didn’t have them were issued one at the toll gate. The discrepancy in payment at full load and when the vehicles are empty is an issue, but we will try to get it resolved.”

The concessionaire said that they will try to make the process smooth so that there is no congestion. “This was the first day of strict implementation but things will improve in the next few days,” the official cited above said.

Karan Singh, the traffic inspector with the Gurugram police under whose jurisdiction the toll plaza falls, said, “Our team reached the spot immediately and jersey barriers at the toll were removed as well as on the main carriageway to ensure smooth vehicle movement. A large number of commercial vehicles did not have RFID tags, due to which they were stopped and this led to congestion. We will be sending our teams in the morning for the next few days to ensure there are no jams.”