Shimla, Jun 1(UNI) Himachal Pradesh High Court on Monday directed the state and Centre to not collect any toll tax at the tax plaza in Solan fixing the next date of hearing for Wednesday.
The Division Bench of Chief Justice L Narayana Swamy and Justice Anoop Chitkara passed this order
while hearing a Public Interest Litigation.
The court allowing the petition fixed the matter for hearing on Wednesday and directed the respondent state and the Center to not collect any toll tax till then.
The PIL filed by one Adit Singal, alleged that the establishment of the toll plaza at Sanwara is illegal and contrary to the rules of National Highway Fee(Determination of Rates and Collection)Rules, 2008.
He alleged that as per rules, no toll plaza can be established in the same section within a distance of 60 kms, whereas two other toll plazas are situated in Chandimandir, District Panchkula and at Parwanoo in District Solan within 60 kilometers from the Sanwara toll plaza.
He has also alleged that the completion certificate stating completion of 95 percent work by M/s G R Infraprojects has wrongly and arbitrarily been issued to it by the National Highways Authority of India.
The petitioner alleged that the toll is being levied before completion of construction work and major part of the construction work of flyover and its an underpass at Kumarhatti, Saproon and Timber Trail Resort at Parwanoo are not complete and will take months or maybe a year or more to be completed and as such it cannot be said that 95 percent of work has been completed.
He further alleged that the public is compelled to pay toll for incomplete facilities that too at exorbitant rates, adding that the toll road has not been maintained properly and part of the stretch is accident-prone, as there is no proper barricading of the roads which join the toll road from the towns and villages along with the national highway.
The petitioner has asked the court to issue directions to forbear the respondents from collecting toll fee at its toll plaza at Sanwara.
He also requested to quash the contract, construction, completion certificate issued to M/GR Infraprojects by the National Authority of India and also to quash the notification fixing the toll charges payable by the vehicles crossing the Sanwara toll plaza.
UNI ML ACL PS2132