Toll collection getting affected due to locals: Concessionaire

GURGAON: Concessionaire of Gurgaon-Faridabad toll road today complained to the administration that their collections have been badly affected due to approach by the locals, who refuse to pay toll tax quite often and regularly indulge in spat with its staff over the issue.

Officials of Gurgaon-Faridabad Toll Road Private Limited, which is a subsidiary of Reliance Infrastructure Limited (RIL), met Gurgaon Police Commissioner Alok Mittal and claimed that the company was incurring losses to the tune of Rs 27 lakh per day due to the problem.

"Indifferent attitude of police and non compliance of toll payment by villagers and dumper drivers is causing huge loss to us to the tune of Rs 27 lakh everyday," said Abhijit Tripathy, Regional Head (Road Projects Division-North) of RIL.

He said due to reduced toll collection, the concessionaire is finding it difficult to repay the loan of Rs 584 crore taken from a consortium of ten banks for the construction of the roads.

The second toll plaza at Crusher Zone is the worst affected and there has been regular damage to the property there, said the toll official.

Two more toll plazas on Ballabgarh-Sohna road are also facing the same problem, he said.

Some influential persons, who do not want to pay the toll tax for their commercial vehicles, provoke others also, Tripathy claimed.

Mittal assured the delegation that the police department will provide sufficient number of police personnel at toll plazas and ensure that every designated vehicle pays the toll.

Meanwhile, Mahesh Daima, Councillor of Gurgaon Municipal Corporation who took part in today's meeting along with some village heads, said government must allow people from nearby villages to use toll road without paying the tax, as they are provided toll-free access to national highways.