Rajpura, August 22
The National Highway between Jalandhar and Panipat has acquired a ‘bombed’ look. Craters dot this stretch on NH-1, where work started in May this year to widen it to six lanes.

Road-laying material, equipment and road rollers take up much of the space. Rain has chipped away the sides. Vast stretches remain unlit at night and the number of accidents has gone up. Four members of a family were killed at Mandi Gobindgarh this month when a truck loaded with construction material overturned and fell on their car.

Overbridges are under construction and driving is a nightmare. Vehicles, specially trucks, often break down and cases of axles breaking into two are becoming quite common.

But while the six-laning project, handed over to a private firm last year, is not going to be completed before November next year, vehicles are being forced to pay ‘toll’ charges since last year itself.

Under the Build-Operate-Transfer ( BOT) agreement, the National Highway Authority of India ( NHAI) appears to have allowed the company to collect toll from the day the agreement was signed. The company will continue to collect toll from vehicles for the next 15 years , including the time spent on laying the road. The toll is being charged at Ladowal (Ludhiana), Shambhu (Rajpura) and Butana (Karnal).

Fuming vehicle owners and drivers have protested about the poor road conditions and lack of safety. There is no justification for levying a toll , they have complained, if the company cannot ensure good road conditions. “ We pay toll for smooth and safe driving and to ensure that our vehicles do not suffer wear and tear or other damages,” fumed Gurmukh Singh, who was on his way to Delhi. He points to trucks parked haphazardly on the highway and throws up his arms in despair.

The Chairman of Punjab State Goods Transport Association, Charan Singh Lohara, claims that though the Association had taken up the issue at the ‘highest level’, no action has been done so far to stop charging the toll fee.

“We have now decided to block the NH near Ladowal toll tax barrier in the first week of September,” he said.

Officials of NHAI (National Highway Authority of India) while talking to TNS on condition of anonymity, agreed that the Central government should initiate action to stop collection of toll tax till completion of six-laning.

However, Colonel R. Rastogi, Project Director, NHAI Project Implementation Unit at Ambala maintained that the company was entitled to collect toll tax as per terms of the agreement. While denying charges of poor road conditions, he added, “I partially agree with people that they must not be charged until the project is completed. But they should bear with us as the road is being laid for them.”