In a move that led to accusations of a deal between Raj Thackeray and the Congress, the Maharashtra government on Thursday promised to bring in a new toll policy before the Lok Sabha elections.
The announcement came after talks between Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan and the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief a day after he called off his State-wide road block against tolls.
The new policy and the decision to shut down 22 toll booths where roads were built using less than Rs. 10 crore have led to suspicion that a deal has been reached between the MNS and the Congress. Another decision was to take up a financial audit of all toll booths in the State.
The BJP criticised the State government, and accused it of striking a deal with the MNS. “These issues had been raised earlier as well by the C.P. Joshi committee appointed by the government. It’s now reacting to Raj Thackeray, hoping his party will be able to cut into our votes in the coming elections,” party leader Vinod Tawde said.
Mr. Chavan agreed to eliminate toll on smaller roads and compensate the contractors. State transport buses will henceforth be excluded from toll. The government agreed to use electronic technology to count the number of vehicles passing through toll booths before deciding the toll contract.
At the meeting, State agencies handling toll roads admitted that facilities such as toilets and parking lots were not available at toll plazas, except on the Mumbai-Pune expressway. The government has agreed to buy land around plazas so that contractors can build these facilities.
After the meeting, Mr. Thackeray said his agitation would continue. “The agitation against toll will continue until the government fulfils its promises. I urge people not to pay toll and any instance of pressuring commuters will not be tolerated,” he told the media after the meeting.
