Recently the Assam state government and National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) have opened up a new tollgate at Nazirakhta near Sonapur, the decision of which attracted vehement opposition from both the commuters and the local residents. Earlier toll plazas in NH 37 and NH 31 in the year 2015 and 2018 attracted mass protest from CSOs of Assam. Kishor Kumar Kalita analyses in depth on the reopening of the toll gate amid the pandemic.

A midst the blow of a pandemic that have claimed millions of lives, the government’s decision and policies which goes against the interest of the common masses, would definitely invite debate and criticism. With the opening of the Nazirakhat toll plaza, there will be two such gates (another one is at Raha) within 100km of each other and people heading from Guwahati towards Nagaon or vice-versa will have to pay double toll tax in their respective singe journey. The local residents while protesting the opening of this new toll gate have revealed that the concerned authorities have introduced this new gate without any notice and it would definitely push the people and commuters to face another economic hardship whose life are already at halt due to the lockdown. Assam,  currently has the following functional tollgates —– Nazirakhat (Kamrup) and Raha(Nagaon) on NH 37, Patgaon(Kokrajhar), Dahalpara(Bongaigaon) and Madanpur(Kamrup) on NH 31 and Mikirati Hawgaon (Hojai) on NH 36 and Manderdisa (Dima Hasao) Earlier the state government and  the NHAI have tried their  best to open toll plazas in NH 37 and NH 31 in the year 2015 and 2018 respectively. But due to far-reaching protests  by the Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS) and Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuva Chatra Parishad (AJYCP) among other organizations, the authorities were compelled to shut down these gates. Contrary to the positions of KMSS and AJYCP who are completely opposing the installation of any toll gate in the National Highway or any part of the state roads and are strongly demanding toll free road for all the citizens, some organisations are taking a position that directly or indirectly favours the highway authorities or the governments. Their position is that until and unless the government and the NHAI have not been able to complete the highway construction, they should not open any toll gate. These organisations are accusing the authorities for violating the established norms for tollgates and repeatedly asking the government to impose toll only after improving the roads. After the opening of new toll gates in Assam  amidst the pandemic crisis, many have   raised their voices against these toll gates as the toll collection from these gates would directly affect those distress citizens whose livelihoods are already been ruined by the pandemic. It is worth mentioning here that Alok Kumar, Regional Officer, North East Zone, NHAI have recently informed before the media that the total revenue collection from the all these toll plazas is likely to be around Rs 60 lakh per day.

We must have to remember that immediately after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the first phase of lockdown in the evening of 24th March, Road Transport and Highways Minister had asked NHAI to suspend toll on all National Highways to ease transportation of essential goods and supplies. In this regard Nitin Gadkari said “Suspension of toll collection is for such people who travel in private vehicles. This will ease their journey without wasting time at the toll plaza. Toll collection has been suspended to reduce inconvenience to such people who have been issued curfew pass by local administration/authorities for all vehicles transporting essential goods and even the vehicles carrying patients,”

Apart from closing the toll gates the Union Minister Nitin Gadkari also asked NHAI Chairman and toll operators across National Highways to provide food, water and other necessary support to migrant workers who are facing severe hardship while stranded at various parts of the country on account of a nationwide lockdown in the wake of coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. “I have advised Chairman NHAI and Highway Concessioners/Toll operators to consider providing food, water or any kind of support to migrant workers/citizens who are trying to reach to their respective native places. At this time of crisis we have to be compassionate for our fellow citizens,” said Gadkari.

So the pertinent question is- if the Central Government has decided in the very beginning of the first phase  of the national lockdown to shut down all the  toll  gates in this country for reducing inconvenience of the people, how the same government or the state governments could re-open the toll gates when the lock down is still in operation? Moreover, a  division  bench of the Bombay High Court while hearing a PIL observed that properly maintained roads is a part of fundamental rights guaranted  by  Article 21 of the Indian Constitution of  India.  The   Division Bench Observed- “It is the fundamental right of a citizen to have roads and footpaths in a reasonably good condition and correspondingly it is the obligation of local authorities to provide it to them. All steps should be taken to see that the citizens are not deprived of their rights.” If our roads have been constructed by using money of the government treasury and the state is obliged to provide good roads to its citizen  considering  it  as a fundamental right, then how the state machinery could impose levy or tax from the citizen for using it?