KOCHI: The National Highways Authority of India on Wednesday requested the Kerala High Court to dismiss the petition seeking a directive to quash the agreement fixing the tenure for collecting toll collection at Paliyekkara on the Mannuthy-Edappally national highway till 2028.
The NHAI said there is no merit in the petitioner's contention that the concessionaire, despite having recovered the total cost incurred by it towards the project work and having earned a reasonable benefit thereon, is still making periodical revision of the toll. "Yearly revision in the user fee is permitted by the notification issued by the Central government," stated NHAI.
The NHAI filed the affidavit in response to a petition filed by Shaji J Kodankandath challenging the extension of agreement. The Mannuthy-Edappally national highway was built at a cost of Rs 721.17 crore. Toll collection started on February 9, 2012.
An RTI response revealed that Rs 801.60 crore has been collected until July 2020. As per the agreement, once the construction cost has been collected, the toll amount must be reduced by 40 per cent, but this is being violated in this matter, pointed out the petitioner.
The affidavit stated that the Central government has a statutory right to levy and decide the rate of fees to be collected for different categories of vehicles using a section of the national highway.
Affidavit
The affidavit stated that the Central government has a statutory right to levy and decide the rate of fees to be collected for different categories of vehicles using a section of the national highway.