Kurali-Siswan toll to be highest in state

Varinder Singh

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 27

Owners of thousands of vehicles who use the 15-km Kurali-Siswan stretch of the recently opened 30-km Morinda-Kurali-Siswan road for commuting between Punjab and Chandigarh should be ready for a rude shock. They will have to cough up the “highest” toll for the use of this road stretch.

The four-lanning of the Morinda-Kurali-Siswan road was projected as one of its major achievements by the state government. It was said the road would provide relief to thousands of people of the state, particularly those visiting the PGI and other important locations in the Chandigarh-Panchkula-Kalka circuit, by circumventing the highly congested Morinda-Kharar or Kurali- Kharar route.

But these commuters will have to pay about Rs 6 per km at the Chandpur toll plaza, the “highest” toll rate in the state. The toll plaza is in place, but it has not become operational so far as the state government is yet to accord a formal approval for it. There are rumours that it might be made operational from April 1.

“The plaza is likely to start collecting toll from commuters within 10 days,” said KK Garg, PWD Chief Engineer (Infrastructure). He said the toll had been fixed purely on the basis of norms stipulated by the state government, police and the Central Government. “Nobody can charge even a single paisa in excess from any commuter,” he said.

The signboard put up by Rohan and Rajdeep Infrastructure Private Limited at the toll plaza mentions that for one-way commuting from Morinda to Siswan, via Kurali, every car or three wheeler owner or driver will have to pay Rs 60. The charges for two-way commuting will be Rs 96.

For every light commercial vehicles and tractor-trailer, the toll will be Rs 91 (one way) and Rs 146 (two way). Every bus, truck and road-roller owner will have to cough up Rs 179 (one way) and Rs. 286 (two way). Heavy truck operators will have to shell out Rs 273 (one way) and Rs 437 (two way). Similarly, owners of heavy vehicles will have to shell out Rs 342 (one way) and Rs 547 (two way).

Though thousands of commuters will pay toll for the entire 30-km Morinda-Kurali-Siswan road stretch (up to Himachal Pradesh), over 75 per cent of them will use only half of the newly built road stretch (around 15 km).

“While calculating the toll, charges for four bridges were taken into account although the company has constructed only one full bridge and two half bridges. Two bridges on the old single-lanned road were already existing,” alleged Ropar-based social activist advocate Dinesh Chadha.

On October 31, 2012, the state government allegedly signed an agreement with the private company as per the policy for the year 2004, which prescribed higher toll rates, instead of the policy for 2013 that prescribed comparatively lower rates.

“The private company had deposited its performance security on October 3, 2013, after the new police came into existence. The policy of 2004 stipulated toll charges of Rs 1.12 per km and Rs 26.91 for the use of four bridges. The policy of 2013 stipulated Rs 0.9 per km as toll. The government favoured the company by allowing it to charge higher toll rates as per old policy,” Chadha alleged.

PWD Chief Engineer (Infrastructure) KK Garg, however, denied that the company was extended any undue favours. “The work on the road is complete and the toll has been fixed in accordance with the norms stipulated by the Centre,” he said.

The private company is said to have invested Rs 75 crore in the project. It has been allowed to collect toll for 16 years, whereby it was expected to reap ‘unprecedented yield’ on its investment.

In 16 years, the projected toll tax collection (in case of two-way fare), as per a 2012 survey (even if the roll rates remain stable), will be around Rs 410 crore, over Rs 7.11 lakh daily. “Since, there will be manifold increase in traffic volume, the collections will go up accordingly. So far, the 35-km Kiratpur Sahib-Mehatpur stretch was considered to be the costliest in terms of toll. On this road, the two-way toll for a car is Rs 90, but the new road is going to outdo that stretch in terms of toll charges,” Chadha said.