Penalty collection reaches ₹1.5 cr at Kherki Daula toll

GURUGRAM: The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has collected ₹1.5 crore as penalty since the implementation of FASTAG on December 15 at the Kherki Daula toll plaza, said officials of the Delhi-gurgaon Expressway concessionaire, Millennium City Expressway Private Limited(mcepl).

The penalty collected from cash payers entering FASTAG lanes amounted ₹37 lakh in the 15 days of December after the FASTAG was launched. In January, the collection was ₹63 lakh, while in February, it was ₹53 lakh (figures were available till February 26).

MCEPL officials said, on an average, NHAI collects ₹2 lakh in penalty daily at the Kherki Daula toll plaza. NHAI has directed the toll officials to collect double the normal toll charges if any commuter is found entering a FASTAG lane without a tag or has a faulty tag.

S Raghuraman, CEO, MCEPL, said, “The electronic toll collection at Kherki-daula toll plaza has reached 82%. An increasing number of commuters are buying FASTAGS and, as such, the number of defaulters has gone down. I am hopeful that by April, the number of penalty payers and the amount of penalty being taken will be reduced by half.”

Every time, commuters cross a FASTAG lane without a valid tag or if their tags are found to be non-functional, then they have to pay a penalty of ₹130 each at the Kherki Daula toll plaza. Rajendra Bhatti, project head, Kherki Daula toll plaza, said, “There are vehicles that are still paying the toll through cash. If a commuter’s FASTAG account falls short of the required toll charges, then they are known as blacklisted commuters. Such people have to pay a penalty.”

The toll officials also said that it is not easy for toll booth operators to collect this amount as many commuters end up fighting with the operators as no one wants to pay double the penalty. There are 25 lanes at the Kherki Daula toll plaza, of which 21 lanes are dedicated to FASTAGS, leaving four as cash lanes.