Brace for paying toll on Solan highway from April

Ambika Sharma

Tribune News Service

Solan, January 20

Commuters travelling on the Parwanoo-Solan section of the National Highway-5, where 83 per cent four-laning work is complete, will have to pay toll from April.

GR Infraprojects, which is executing the four-laning work, is in the process of setting up the toll plaza and its related paraphernalia at Sanwara. Its officials had approached the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to allow them collect toll from the next financial year from April. It is built under Phase-III of the National Highways Development Project on build, operate and transfer basis.

“A company can charge toll on a four-laned road after completion of 80 per cent work and a request has been received from GR Infraprojects to set up a toll plaza at Sanwara,” said senior official of the NHAI.

Deputy Commissioner, Solan, KC Chaman, who had recently convened a meeting of project officials to oversee its progress, said the company officials were working out the nitty-gritty of setting up the plaza.

The company will be handed over 100 per cent land by the month-end and the challenging task of making available 32-m carriageway at Kumarhatti has also been accomplished as against the 28-m available earlier.

Assigned for 30 months, the four-laning work on the 39-km stretch had begun in September 2015 and it is supposed to be completed by March 2018. However, several problems like delay in availability of land, halt on work by the NGT for a few months and design-related issues cropped up, delaying the completion of work. The company had initially sought an extension till June 2019 but given the delay in availability of land and other issues, it is now supposed to be completed by March 31 after a delay of nearly 24 months.

Project manager, GR Infraprojects, Rajiv Mahajan said issues like delay in grant of land and inclement weather delayed the execution of the project. He said apart from some work near Timber Trail Resorts and at Saproon Chowk, other work was likely to be completed by March 31.

The issue of early completion of the road had also been taken up before Union Minister for Roads and Surface Transport Nitin Gadkari, who had directed officials to ensure its completion at the earliest.