Revised toll not to be collected at Hejamadi for now
Udupi, Dec 2: The National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) has directed its regional office to not collect the combined user fee at the Hejamadi toll gate until a concrete decision or consensus is reached on the matter.
A press communique issued by NHAI on the revision of user fee rates at Hejamadi toll plaza following the closure of Surathkal toll gate said Udupi MLA Raghupathi Bhat had telephonically directed the regional authority to not collect user fee of Surathkal toll plaza at Hejamadi till December 5.
A meeting has been scheduled on December 5 by Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari with the Ministers and MLAs of Udupi district to discuss the issue, Bhat said.
He said a meeting would be held on Saturday in which the Udupi district in-charge Minister and people's representatives would take part to discuss the merger of two toll plazas and its repercussions.
The Udupi MLA suggested considering the division of Surathkal toll plaza user fee equally among the three toll gates - Bhramarakotlu, Talapady, Hejamadi - instead of adding the entire user fee amount at Hejamadi gate which would lead to protests by the public.
Udupi deputy commissioner M Kurma Rao has also requested the NHAI officials to not collect the combined user fee at Hejamadi, terming the move as incorrect and unjustified.
The toll gate at Surathkal near here was closed on Thursday after prolonged protests by the public, citing the existence of two toll plazas within a 10-km distance which violated National Highway rules.
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Trump repeats claim he stopped potential nuclear war between India and Pakistan
New York/Washington (PTI): US President Donald Trump has repeated his claim of resolving the India-Pakistan conflict and asserted that Islamabad's leadership credited him for saving millions of lives.
"We stopped a potential nuclear war between Pakistan and India. And the head of Pakistan, a highly respected General, he's a Field Marshal and also the Prime Minister of Pakistan, said President Trump saved 10 million lives, maybe more...,” Trump said Monday.
He made these remarks at Mar-a-Lago, Florida, flanked by Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, Navy Secretary John Phelan, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
“You know, eight planes were shot down. That war was starting to rage, and he actually said the other day that President Trump saved 10 million lives, maybe more. So we solved all these wars. The only one I haven't solved yet is Russia, Ukraine,” he said.
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Since May 10, when Trump announced on social media that India and Pakistan had agreed to a “full and immediate” ceasefire after a “long night” of talks mediated by Washington, he has repeated his claim over 60 times that he “helped settle” the tensions between the two neighbours.
New Delhi has consistently denied any third-party intervention.
India launched Operation Sindoor on May 7, targeting terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir in retaliation for the April 22 Pahalgam attack that killed 26 civilians.
India and Pakistan reached an understanding on May 10 to end the conflict after four days of intense cross-border drone and missile strikes.
