Strongly condemning the Union Govt for proposing two additional Toll Plazas in Jammu on the National Highway from Lakhanpur to Jammu and one at Phalain Mandal on the Ring road, JKNPP Chairman and former Minister Harsh Dev Singh has said that the move was fraught with dangerous portended. He said that people of Jammu were wary of even the existing Toll Plaza at Ban which was taxing them heavily in addition to the commercial Toll Plaza at Lakhanpur and another at Nashri. “It is however disturbing to note that rather than shutting down Ban Toll, the GOI has embarked upon the construction of two additional Toll Plazas at Hiranagar and Sarore in Jammu within a distance of around 40 Kms besides a third one on the Ring road,” he added. Describing the proposed operation of six Toll Plazas in close proximity of Jammu as an act of organized and institutionalized loot, Mr Singh warned to launch an agitation in case the decision to install new Toll Plazas was not revoked at the earliest. He said that such huge taxation in the form of multiple Toll Plazas was simply unaffordable for the common masses and particularly those who had to commute on regular basis between Jammu, Samba, Marh and Lakhanpur. “Further they constituted the most menacing threat to the pockets of students, labourers, farmers and other economically weaker sections of society. With pilgrims and tourists also having to pay toll at six different locations in the vicinity of Jammu alone, the business and tourism of the region is also likely to be adversely impacted,” he said and added that the traders, transporters and other private operators had also expressed their concern over the issue which had the potential to explode in a big way. He further said that the situation in J&K was already very sensitive and the Government move of imposing such ‘Jazia’ would have the effect of adding fuel to fire. Lambasting the BJP for its criminal silence towards the grave issue of public importance, Singh said that it would have to account for such anti-people policies in the form of increased toll, taxation and enhanced fines as implemented under the new Motor Vehicles Act as well.
