Entry tax in Khadki leaves residents sore

“I have five tempos carrying material towards Yerwada every day. The tempos have to do several rounds and this will be an additional expense for me,” said Dnyaneshwar Nikam,who lives in Sangamwadi.

Nikam argues that he lives less than one km from the PMC limits. “For such a short distance,the KCB is forcing me to cough up a significant amount daily,” he said. A tempo is charged Rs 10,while heavy vehicles have to pay Rs 20. The KCB has said this is a long pending move. “This is one of the revenue generation move for us and has been a practice for several years in several cantonments across the country. In fact,the vehicle entry fee is in PCB for over a decade now,” said KCB CEO K C Kaushik.

Some residents argue that even if they do not have to pay a fee to use the road,the toll naka will invariably slow down traffic. “Unlike the PCB road,ours is a small road. We face traffic jams on a regular basis. If a toll naka is opened,it will slow down the traffic,” said Dasharat Shorte. Residents are also complaining that they were not consulted before the roads were declared as one-ways.

But Kaushik is undeterred. “It will not lead to congestion. Our roads are wider than those in PCB,” he said.