The Belgaum Cantonment is collecting toll on commercial vehicles in the name of “license fee” and the manner in which it is being collected is nothing but extortion and worst part the district administration and the police are not acting on this for reasons unknown.
Take this example of today morning (29 Feb)
Location Congress road Near Kagal Cross
The PVG Pune – Belgaum bus was stopped by 3 people and asked for a toll of Rs.30. Officially there is no Rs.30 slab at all and were forcefully asking to pay the toll. One amongst the three stood infront of the bus so that the bus cant leave easily.
What is this Goonda Raj and the Police is not acting upon this even after repeated representations from various citizens, may be they are waiting for something more serious incident to happen.
Yesterday your editor had a slight miss or else he would have been in the news for hitting one of those youth collecting toll as he was standing the middle of the road.
The collection of license fee, which has been taking place, on and off, in a haphazard manner, at 3 or 4 points on the roads of Cantonment, is proving to be a big nuisance to the citizens of Belgaum and will soon prove to be terribly costly of human life as soon there is likely to be blood and death in front of these ‘toll-nakas’ – and precious and innocent life will be lost – all for the sake of few rupees.
There is absolutely no sign displaying what charges are payable by what category of vehicles and which categories have been exempted by the Hon’ble High Court of Karnataka Order of 13th February 2012.
The Contractor is targeting any vehicle with a yellow number plate and extracting the maximum rate from the hapless driver. This is totally wrong, arbitrary, discriminatory and illegal. Proof of this has been obtained from the drivers and may be inspected by anyone.
At present, there are no notice boards whatsoever indicating what charges are to be paid by which category of vehicles. Also, there is no intimation of which category of vehicles have been exempted by the Hon’ble High Court of Karnataka on 13th of February 2012. Because of this, the Contractor is charging the maximum rate, and disputes are taking place.
We would like to urge you to prevail upon the Cantonment Authorities to immediately install large notice boards, visible from afar, of all information i.e., who is collecting this charge, what is the rate per category of vehicle, which are the exempted categories, etc., in Kannada, English, Hindi and Marathi. This board should be illuminated after sunset.
The Notice Board should display the name of the Authority to which complaints of overcharging etc. should be made.
Youth with no identity cards armed with lathis are manning the collection booths and running in front of vehicles without understanding the flow of traffic problems. Some vehicles cannot stop suddenly and the youths who have caused the accident will disappear from the scene.
The Contractor will be responsible for any damage or death caused in such accidents.
The collection of the ‘license fee’ is taking place at three points, initially – on Ganeshpur Road, on both sides of Congress Road near ‘Pop-in’ and near the tri-junction of roads at Amba Bhavan.
All three roads are Belgaum’s ‘arterial’ roads. Any blocks in this arterial system has serious consequences. The C.E.O. at his Press Conference on 21st has said that soon ‘Toll Nakas’ will be set up at Ashoka Circle, Dharwad road (near Bharatesh College) and near the Hindalga Ganapati Temple.
These are also arterial roads and this will not only paralyse traffic – but cause system failure. There will be traffic jams, loss of temper, fist-fights and violence. The Traffic Police will come under very heavy stress and may not be able to cope. Already Ashoka Circle traffic is virtually unmanageable.
If there is blood and death on the road in front of the Toll Nakas, these youth, who have caused the loss of precious life will vanish without a trace, perhaps back to Ahmednagar. These youth should be given identity cards and the identity registered with the Police. They should also be fingerprinted.
Cantonment Authorities should be informed that in the event of loss of life, or limb – or damage, the legal responsibility of causing the accident will devolve upon Balaji, the Contractor of the Cantonment Board and vicariously upon the Cantonment Board who has ordered the operation – all for a few rupees.
We are still not able to understand why the District administration / Police are not able to handle this situation in a proper manner. When contacted they say, “ we are in constant touch with Cantonment and a resolution would be out soon.”
Why are we waiting for some one to look after this system it is we paying them
why wit stick as we done some mistake..??
if we stop paying them they wil block how long 1-2-3 or max whole day
i have made ma mind 1of ur truck wil cross this tolls & wil inform our drivers not to pay lets see what wil they do?
if required video wil be made to see how they react wit the situation
An institution with displine as one of its core values, exact opposite of it is being openly sponsored / displayed on Belgaum roads.
Another Roalty Free suggestion.
If motive of toll collection is financial crunch then close toll collection and convert them to Vada Pav Booths. You will make more money and also get goodwill of Belgaum people.
Board has engaged services of someone else to collect toll on their behalf.
Service Tax is payable on Toll by the Toll collection agency. Is such tax being paid to Service Tax Department?
If No … 0831-2424890 Service Tax Dept Belgaum.
Why not post a video of this illegal toll collection on CNN IBN Citizen Journalist ?
Staying in Cantonment area for the past 30 years doesnt still make me feel proud of it, for the simple fact that there is no RTI what so ever and no clarity in any records of the board. The toll collections is just a example of it. Also the new water pipe lines in camp area are a pure example of wastage of public money.
Belgaum cantonment board trying to take Rs 30/- Toll Tax even from Long distance Passenger Buses… Today before getting down near Arun Talkies, so called toll collectors surrounded the Pune – Belgaum PVG Translines Bus near the Toll naka set up near cantt pond and were forcefully asking to pay Tax, even one of the collectors stood in front of the Bus, so that it cannot move. Is it Toll collection or so called Goonda tax??
This is illegal harrasment… where is the law enforcement in Belgaum?? Do long distance night passenger buses plying on congress road too subjected to Toll Tax??
As a kid growing up in the cantonment camp area years back was a delight,but when i visited home after a long time,this time recognized the decadence setting in.The roads near Mahadev mandir were bone rattling,buildings are coming up at every nook and corner,the area looks more like a ghetto,the officials present in the cantonment board area themselves nonchalantly flout the law,there are buildings with 3 storeys,whereas the restricted floors is one floor with a terrace.We are law abiding citizens and the residents of camp area from the past 60 odd years visit the cantonment office we are made to run from pillar to post for 2 ,3 and show documental and visual evidence where the cantonment officials go scot free with multistorey buildings and innumerable vehicles.I believe the toll tax fiasco is an ego clash between the cantonment and the cooperation and the poor residents are getting caught up in between.It should be done away fast else nothing can stand the common man’s anger.
i guess someone in Belgaum must write or explain the authorities in the cantt bd if any extortion is being done by the contractor at the booths.
i feel that the following suggestions should be implemented:
1. the cantt bd should properly put illuminated boards at every booth indicating the fee to be paid by each category of vehicle.
2. the board should also display teh names of teh officials one can complain to in case of any extortion
3. the booth should not be on the road, obstructing traffic, but on the side of the road with a diversion leading to and out of the booth so that vehicles can stand in line to pay the fees and not obstruct the traffic behind
4. the personnel employed by the contractor should be in uniform and well behaved.
5. reciept books should be issued by the board and regularly accounted for.
6. cantt bd should advertise in paper the fees and procedures of collection of this fees
7. grievance redressal mechanism should be in place at the end of cantt bd.
once these procedures are in place there should not be less number of complaints and least trouble to the citizens of belgaum.
The toll collector’s are stopping buses and trucks on NH4A thats government of India and NHAI property, how they can claim it as under cantonment board??? Any clarifications…..
The cantonment officers are trying to make money . How many receipts were printed and who prints it. Who has authorised them to collect fees . the congress road is not the property of MLIRC. I feel that all areas adjoing city should be taken away from MLIRC. The collection of toll is a mockery of the constitution
The Very truth about this cantonment board Toll Naka. Thks for bringing up this notice to all the people. I dont think police or any district administration would take up this matter seriously.. if they would have taken the pre measurement about this matter.. these cantonment people would have never behaved like this.