Nakkian toll plaza shut; former ministers who 'favoured' contractor to face action: Punjab CM

Kiratpur Sahib, April 1

A toll plaza set up on the Kiratpur Sahib-Nangal-Una road near Nakkian village in November 2007 was shut down today.

Speaking at the site, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said it was the eighth toll plaza being shut down by his government in a year.

An amount of over Rs 10 lakh per day was being collected at the toll plaza.

Mann alleged the Congress and Akalis had “connived” with toll plaza agencies to extend benefits to them by blatantly ignoring their misdeeds. “No action was taken against the concessionaire even as terms and conditions of the contract were violated repeatedly. The AAP government will take an appropriate action against the then PWD ministers and officials who had favoured the contractor,” he said.

Started on November 20, 2007, the concessionaire was to “overlay” the road by November 19, 2013. The company, however, delayed it by 347 days and the work was completed on November 1, 2014, he said, adding that Sharanjit Singh Dhillon of the SAD government was in-charge of the PWD ministry at that time.

Alleging a nexus between SAD and Congress governments, he said the second time the “overlay” the road was delayed by 1,093 days during the Congress regime in 2017-2020 when Razia Sultana and Vijay Inder Singla held the PWD portfolio.

Highlighting the contract with the company could have been scrapped on both the occasions for the violation, he said even a Rs 67-crore penalty was yet to be recovered. He said the company had sought an extension of 582 days on the pretext of loss suffered during the farmers’ agitation and pandemic, but his government denied it.

Replying to a query of mediapersons, the CM said it would be ensured that the roads were maintained properly by the Public Works Department.

Govt may move court over Fund

The CM announced that the state government was exploring the possibility of moving a court for seeking the pending Rural Development Fund (RDF) from the Centre. He said the Union Government was harassing the state by stalling funds worth Rs 30,000 crore under the RDF

‘Crop relief by Baisakhi’

CM Bhagwant Mann said farmers, who have suffered losses due to damage to the crops following rain, would receive the relief by Baisakhi