M A I N   N E W S

Panipat-Jalandhar e-way
Rs 1,100-cr toll in 4 yrs, but highway reaches nowhere
Mohit Khanna/TNS

Work in progress on NH-I at Ludhiana’s Sherpur Chowk hampers traffic flow. Tribune photo: Himanshu Mahajan

Ludhiana, August 5
Commuters have so far paid Rs 1,100 crore as toll in the past four years on the 291.1-km expressway project on the National Highway-I (Panipat-Jalandhar), which is far from completion.

Despite collecting such a hefty amount, the construction company, Soma/Isolux National Highway One Tollway Pvt Ltd, has offered incomplete or poorly finished overbridges, waterlogged underpasses, road full of pot holes and storm water pipe along the highway that has turned into a drain and led to several drowning incidents.

The latest bus mishap on this stretch in which nearly 42 were feared drowned has again brought to the fore the fact that hefty toll is no guarantee of safe journey. According to the documents available under the RTIAct, the project of constructing the Panipat-Jalandhar national highway, involving an investment of approximately Rs 4,500 crore, was awarded to Soma/Isolux National Highway One Tollway Pvt Ltd in May 2009, on a design, finance, build operate and transfer basis.

As per the contract, share of the NHAI in the first year was 20.14 per cent which is increased by 1 per cent every year. In four years, Rs 11,01,11,49,832 has been collected from three toll plazas (Karnal, Shambu and Ladowal). The toll collection witnessed nearly a two-fold rise in 2009-10, the first year when SOMA- Isolux was awarded a construction contract.

In the financial of 2008-9, the NHAI had collected a toll of Rs 1,26,55,51,317, while in the corresponding year, the toll collection had touched the Rs 200-crore mark.

When the company was asked to provide details of the expenditure being incurred on maintenance and development of the area coming under Ladhowal toll plaza in the past 10 years, the NHAI authorities simply shrugged off the responsibility.

In a reply, the NHAI authorities said separate details of expenditure incurred on maintenance/development of the stretch, for which the toll is being charged, is not maintainable. In 2012-2013, the company collected Rs 290,86,02,221 and from April 1 till June 31 , the company had made Rs 78,84,12,553. Going by the figure, the projected earning of the company from toll tax would be Rs 3,15,36,50,212 from 2013 to 2014.

“What is shocking is the fact that while the toll collection of the company is swelling every year, there has been no concerted effort to make these roads commuter-friendly. The tragic bus accident at Sirhind Canal Bridge is an eye-opener and speaks volumes about the shoddy construction work. The bus mishap near Sirhind is not the first one as just about a couple of months ago, a boy who was walking on the Sutlej Bridge drowned after he slipped from a hole in the footpath and fell into the river. Shockingly the drowning incident took place merely 100 metres from the Ladhowal toll plaza,” said RTI activists Sarabjit Singh Kahlon, Prem Gupta, Joginder Singh and Jaswant Singh Dhanjal.

They said Ludhiana was paying the price for the shoddy construction project. “The entire length and breadth of the city has been dug up and it is virtually nightmarish experience to travel on the NH-I,” said Jaswant Singh of the Nigraan Sewa Sanstha. Parmod Kumar, General Manager of SOMA-Isolux, said the company was facing loss of around Rs 10 crore every month.

“We collect nearly 24 crore every month from three toll plazas. A share of Rs 6.5 crore goes to the NHAI per month. Around Rs 1.5 crore is our internal expense. Further, we are paying nearly Rs 26 crore per month as interest to different banks every month. Under such a situation it is very difficult to continue the construction work. We have spoken to the bank and requested them to revise their interests,” said Parmod.