Uttar Pradesh police personnel present at the site have also been directed to ensure the protests remain strictly farmer centric. A company managing the Ladowal Toll plaza on the Panipat-Jalandhar highway has moved to the Punjab and Haryana High Court claiming loss of Rs 36.63 crore as it is unable to collect toll fee due to law and order problem following the farmers agitation.
The petitioner, Panipat-Jalandhar NH-1 Tollway Private Limited, through counsel Advocate Sumeet Goel, has contended before the bench that company suffered loss of around Rs 36.63 crore, excluding interest, following non-collection of requisite toll fees at Ladowal toll plaza from October 7 to November 24.
The petitioner’s counsel further submitted that the company was granted the exclusive right, licence and authority to construct, operate and maintain around 291 km of the six-lane, from km-96 to km-387, on National Highway 1 from Panipat to Jalandhar for 15 years with the right to exclusive levy and collect toll from May 11, 2009. However, the working and collection of toll at the Ladowal Toll plaza was disrupted and the requisite toll could not be collected, and the non-collection of toll has also resulted in disruption of highway maintenance.
The petitioner company submitted that they had requested the Ludhiana police authorities to ensure the toll plaza’s functioning and have sent a communication to the project director, NHAI, requesting him for police protection for the assets and staff to prevent disruption in operation.
The bench of Justice Harsimran Singh Sethi, hearing the matter, has asked the toll company to furnish information regarding position at other toll plazas run by it, and have scheduled the hearing of the matter further for January 5, 2021.
