Shimla, Sept 19,
The Himachal Pradesh High Court has stayed the collection of toll at the Sanwara barrier on the Chandigarh–Shimla National Highway-5 till October 30, expressing “serious concern over the poor condition of road and the lack of basic amenities.”
The order came from a Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Gurmeet Singh Sandhawalia and Justice Ranjan Sharma while hearing a petition.
Speaking about it, advocate Ganesh Barowalia, said, “The Hon’ble Court has taken note of the hardships faced by commuters and observed that toll cannot be collected when basic facilities are not provided. The Bench has directed that collection at the Sanwara barrier be stopped till October 30.”
Barowalia added that the court has directed the Deputy Commissioner, Solan, to ensure compliance with its order and to extend all necessary assistance to the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) in carrying out repair work.
Further, the Bench instructed the Public Works Department (PWD) to improve the condition of the road stretch from Kaithlighat to Shimla, with particular emphasis on the industrial area near Shoghi where the situation was described as “particularly alarming.”
According to Barowalia, the matter has been listed for further hearing on October 30. “The Hon’ble Court has already expanded the scope of the petition to include other toll plazas across the state, including those near the Nangal Municipal Council limits, and has sought replies from NHAI within three weeks,” he said.
He also highlighted that the Bench flagged issues at the Timber Trail barrier, where only two to three lanes were operational on weekends and no free lane was available for Himachal-registered vehicles despite their exemption from entry tax.
Barowalia concluded, “A detailed order in the matter is awaited, but the direction is clear: toll collection cannot go hand-in-hand with public inconvenience and dilapidated infrastructure.”
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