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| Strict action demanded against irregularities by toll contractor at ban toll plaza: Hotel Association | | |  Early Times Report
Jammu, Oct 29: The Hotel & Restaurant Association in Katra held an emergency meeting to address the irregularities carried out by the contractor at Ban Toll Plaza, particularly regarding the total control of the highway at this point through the use of muscle power.
The meeting highlighted that the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) rules are explicit in stating that areas within 20 kilometers of a toll plaza should be provided with local passes, and the Deputy Commissioners of the concerned districts have the authority to identify and specify areas falling within this 20-kilometer radius of the Toll Plaza. In the case at hand, different Project Directors of NHAI have communicated with Deputy Commissioners at different times to ascertain the areas within 20 kilometers of the Ban Toll Plaza. Deputy Commissioners of Jammu, Reasi, and Udhampur have duly identified these areas within 20 kilometers of the Ban Toll Plaza. The Project Directors, through various communications, conveyed the same information to the Toll Contractor, instructing them to issue local passes to residents of areas within 20 kilometers. This system had been in place for the past 7-8 years.
However, the current Toll Contractor, who recently obtained the contract for the Ban Toll Plaza, has been involved in irregularities. He abruptly stopped renewing passes for residents within 20 kilometers, especially those from Katra and surrounding areas, without any logical basis and against the instructions of the NHAI’s immediate authority, the Project Director. The Project Director had previously warned the contractor that action would be taken against them as per the contract agreement if they failed to issue local monthly passes to residents of villages within 20 kilometers from the Ban Toll Plaza.
The members of the Hotel & Restaurant Association stated that the present contractor is a willful offender who repeatedly violates rules despite clear warnings, which raises concerns about law and order issues. They called for strict action against the contractor, reactivation of passes that have been deactivated, renewal and issuance of local passes that have been stopped, and actions against the irregularities committed by the contractor, including the filing of FIRs against them.
Furthermore, members discussed the joining of the 6-lane expressway at Tarakot Marg, which they believed would bypass Katra. They suggested that the expressway, which is already connected to Katra at the new bus stand, should not bypass the town.
The meeting was attended by various members of the Hotel & Restaurant Association, including the President, Chairman, Senior Vice President, Vice President, and Executive members, as well as members of the Press Club and other local individuals. |
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