Govt must step in, stop abuse of toll staff, says operator

Gurgaon: A toll collector suffered fractures in his left leg when a mini bus hit him in an attempt to speed away without paying tax at Kherki Daula toll plaza on Thursday. Next morning, a couple in a Swift refused to pay toll and allegedly assaulted three booth operators.
Though the toll operators have filed complaints in both the cases, police allegedly have not taken any action against anyone so far.

According to employees at the toll plaza, they had been at the receiving end on several such occasions in the past, too, but police have failed to take any action. “We regularly face such problems, wherein commuters refuse to pay tax and start abusing and assaulting us if we insist,” said a staffer on condition of anonymity.

The toll plaza authorities said they submitted reports, with proof of commuters arguing with staff at the plaza, to cops and the transport department regularly. MCEPL chief S Raghuraman said, “Maintaining law and order is, after all, the responsibility of the police, not ours.”

Skylark head T C Rao said, “Toll plaza operators don’t have any legal authority. We’re mere regulators and can’t implement anything. The problem is police don’t provide security at the toll booths. The government needs to intervene to solve this recurring problem.” But till then, the operators will have to fend for themselves. “We are planning to give self-defence training to women operators so that they can defend themselves if harassed by commuters,” added Rao. Gurgaon deputy commissioner Vinay Pratap Singh said, “The responsibility of maintaining law and order at the plaza lies with everyone, from MCEPL and Skylark to the police and district administration.”