NEW DELHI: Residents of 26 villages, including Bakkarwala, Dichaun Kalan, Kanjhawala, Nangli Sakrawati, and Karala, whose land was acquired for the construction of Urban Extension Road-II (UER-II), have demanded exemption from toll tax for local commuters.
The villagers argued that in other states, communities affected by road projects are typically granted toll exemptions as a standard practice.
They have raised this demand with the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and the Ministry of Road Transport, seeking similar relief.“...the undersigned representatives of villages and civil society organisations write to bring to your attention an urgent matter concerning the implementation of toll exemption for residents of villages through which the Urban Extension Road-II (UER-II) passes in Delhi,” the villagers stated in their letter.
“NHAI acquired land from numerous villages for the construction of UER-II, significantly impacting local communities. It is a well-established practice across states in India that local residents of villages affected by land acquisition for highway projects are granted toll exemptions.
The same rightful provision must be extended to our villagers, ensuring that they are not financially burdened for using a road built on their ancestral land,” the villagers demanded.
“We urge NHAI and the Ministry to take immediate steps to officially notify toll exemptions for residents of these villages before the formal inauguration of UER-II. Denial of this rightful exemption would be unjust and discriminatory towards Delhi’s rural communities,” they added.
Meanwhile, NHAI has begun preparing detailed project reports for three new roads that will connect upcoming expressways with UER-II.One of these projects includes a new link road (approximately 20 km long) that will connect UER-II via the KMP Expressway to the Delhi-Katra Expressway.
This will provide direct and seamless connectivity for vehicles traveling from Jammu & Kashmir and Punjab to the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway and IGI Airport. The second project is a proposed 17-km link between UER-II and Tronica City via UER-II, near the under-construction Delhi-Dehradun Expressway.
The third project involves the construction of a 35-km corridor connecting the Delhi-Dehradun Expressway with Noida. This road will facilitate non-stop travel to Noida for commuters from north, northwest, and southwest Delhi.