High Court of J&K and Ladakh Critiques Toll Plazas for Money-Making Motives

Jammu, Feb 26 (NationPress) The High Court of J&K and Ladakh has instructed the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways to decrease toll rates across the union territory.

Officials announced on Wednesday that the J&K High Court is aiming to provide relief for both commuters and Mata Vaishno Devi pilgrims by mandating the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways to reduce exorbitant toll fees within four months.

The Court's directive stated that the toll charges at the Lakhanpur and Bann toll plazas should be set at 20% of the rates that were applicable prior to January 26 of the previous year until the national highway from Lakhanpur to Udhampur is fully operational.

A division bench, including Chief Justice Tashi Rabstan and Justice M.A. Chowdhary, issued these directives following a PIL that sought exemption from toll collection along the Jammu-Pathankot Highway between Lakhanpur and Bann until the ongoing work on the Delhi-Amritsar-Katra Expressway is completed. This highway is being extended to connect with the expressway.

"There should not be an excessive proliferation of toll plazas in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh solely for the purpose of extracting money from the public. The respondents are imposing steep toll charges at the Bann toll plaza, while other toll plazas also have high rates," remarked the bench in a comprehensive 12-page ruling issued on Tuesday.

"As a result, not only is the NHAI (National Highways Authority of India) accumulating thousands of crores in revenue, but private contractors are also profiting significantly," the ruling further elaborated.

The judgment insisted that toll fees must be reasonable and should not serve as merely a revenue-generating scheme. The respondents, particularly the concerned Union Ministry, are urged to impose "fair and genuine" fees at the toll plazas, thereby reducing the current high rates. The decision is to be finalized positively within four months from the date of the ruling.

The high court also ordered the involved parties—the NHAI, the Jammu and Kashmir government, and the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways—to retract within a week any orders concerning the redistribution of toll collection responsibilities along the Lakhanpur to Udhampur stretch, effective since January 26 of last year following the shutdown of the Thandi Khui toll plaza.

"The respondents must charge only 20% of the toll fee immediately, meaning that toll fees at both the Lakhanpur and Bann toll plazas will be 20% of the previous rates until the national highway from Lakhanpur to Udhampur is fully operational, ensuring smooth public use. Full toll charges shall apply only after an independent surveyor issues a certification in this regard," the ruling outlined.

The court also directed the respondents to refrain from setting up any toll plazas within 60 kilometers of National Highway 44. "If any toll plaza exists in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir or in the Union Territory of Ladakh within 60 kilometers of the national highway, the respondents are ordered to dismantle it within two months from today," it stated.

The respondents and the contractors of the toll plazas were also instructed to refrain from hiring individuals with a criminal history.