NHAI, govt at loggerheads

The ongoing tussle between National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) and Haryana government over the closure of a crossing at Shankar Chowk on Gurgaon Expressway, without due permission, intensified on Tuesday. Sanjeev K Ahuja reports.

The ongoing tussle between National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) and Haryana government over the closure of a crossing at Shankar Chowk on Gurgaon Expressway, without due permission, intensified on Tuesday.

HT Image

The expressway concessionaire company, Delhi-Gurgaon Super Connectivity Limited (DSCL), claimed to have slowed down the toll collection process to accommodate additional vehicular traffic because of the new traffic diversion plan.

The Gurgaon police, DLF Group and Cybercity Welfare Society had agreed to a one-way traffic plan for DLF Cyber City by blocking the busy Shankar Chowk from February 18 despite opposition from NHAI and DSCL.

The police department had also blamed NHAI and DSCL authorities for deliberately slowing down traffic on the stretch to thwart their new plan.

Manoj Aggarwal, CEO (highway) of the concessionaire company, said additional vehicular traffic coming from Gurgaon and Udyog Vihar side and headed towards DLF City (Phase 3) or Cyber City had started piling up just ahead of the toll plaza to take a u-turn.

“We are forced to slow down the toll collection process to avoid vehicles colliding with the ones taking a u-turn. The diversion and new traffic plan was implemented without proper research,” Aggarwal said.

DSCL officials added that the new traffic plan was in violation of the NHAI Act and State Support Agreement.

Gurgaon police commissioner Surjit Singh Deswal, meanwhile, said the one-way traffic plan was implemented in the large interest of commuters who had been facing hardship and long traffic jams at Shankar Chowk daily basis as NHAI and DSCL had failed to address the issue.