Protests as toll collection begins on newly opened Bengaluru-Mysuru highway
Ramanagara, Mar 14: Two days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Bengaluru-Mysuru Expressway, several outfits staged protests at a toll plaza near here on Tuesday, opposing the National Highways Authority of India's (NHAI) decision to levy charges without proper service roads and passes for local residents.
Opposition Congress workers too joined the protesters and held demonstrations.
The protesters are opposed to collecting toll fees until the entire project is completed. They have also expressed reservations regarding service roads not being built, and the toll rate fixed being too high.
Amid heavy presence of police personnel, protesters shouted slogans demanding justice and also criticised the government, while some even threatened to destroy the toll plaza altogether. Several protesters were detained by the police.
Being the first day of toll collection, some technical glitches also added to the chaos, making commuters wait for a long time, due to congestion.
Many cab drivers, who commute on the stretch daily, hit out at NHAI authorities for mismanagement, charging high toll fees for short distances, and no proper service road.
"I'm going for 20 kilometres on this stretch, for which I have to pay Rs 147, where should we go? If there was a proper service road, I wouldn't have come here, how should I go?" a taxi driver asked.
Another car driver heading towards Ramanagara, alleged that locals have not been issued any passes. "This is not right, locals are facing the problems."
Speaking in Bengaluru, Karnataka Congress President D K Shivakumar said it was not right for the Prime Minister to have inaugurated the Expressway, without the completion of the project and having no proper service roads to help local residents.
"It was done for the sake of politics ahead of elections and not for the sake of people," he asserted.
Later in the evening, Shivakumar tweeted: "I have seen on TV and newspapers since morning about people expressing outrage near the toll centre on the Bengaluru-Mysuru Expressway. Today, I too had an experience while travelling from Bidadi to Ramanagara. To go from Bidadi to Ramanagara, I had to pay a toll of Rs 135, they have charged Rs 270 in the pretext of a problem with the FASTag scanner."
On March 12, Prime Minister Modi inaugurated the 118-km Bengaluru-Mysuru Expressway project here. It will reduce the travel time between Bengaluru and Mysuru from around three hours to about 75 minutes, according to officials.
The Rs 8,480 crore project involved six-laning of the Bengaluru-Nidaghatta-Mysuru section of NH-275, and will act as a catalyst for socio-economic development in the region, they said.
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Rajnath Singh chairs IGoM meet, urges constant vigil over West Asia crisis
New Delhi (PTI): Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday emphasised the need for round-the-clock monitoring of the West Asia conflict and called for a calibrated response to deal with any eventuality to ensure that national interests remain protected.
Singh made the comments while chairing a high-level meeting of the Informal Group of Ministers (IGoM) set-up to monitor the situation in West Asia.
The meeting was attended by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri, Power Minister Manohar Lal, Chemicals and Fertilizers Minister J P Nadda, Consumer Affairs Minister Prahlad Joshi and Minister of Railways, Information and Broadcasting, Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw.
In view of the "uncertain situation", the defence minister underlined the importance of round-the-clock monitoring of the situation and the need to respond in a calibrated manner to deal with any eventuality, an official readout said.
He stressed on the need to leave no stone unturned to ensure that the people of the country face the minimum effect of the conflict, it said.
It was the second meeting of the IGoM after it was set up last month.
The IGoM was apprised of the measures being taken by the government in the wake of the ongoing West Asia conflict, Singh said on social media.
"We also deliberated upon the next steps to be taken by the government to mitigate any adverse impact arising due to the ongoing conflict," he said.
The defence ministry said in the readout said, "In the meeting, the seven empowered groups of secretaries briefed the IGoM on the steps being taken to tackle the situation."
"The IGoM was apprised about measures undertaken by the Ministry of Finance to address concerns arising due to global trade disruptions and provide relief and support to the industry, especially manufacturing, and bolster investor confidence," it said.
It listed measures including notification issued on Wednesday on full customs duty exemption on 40 critical petrochemical products till June 30.
The ministry also mentioned announcement of a special one-time relief measure for eligible units in SEZs to sell manufactured goods in Domestic Tariff Area (DTA) at concessional customs duty rates to be effective from April 1 to March 31.
It also noted another notification issued by the Department of Revenue clarifying that the provisions of GAAR (General Anti Avoidance Rules) will not be invoked in respect of investments made prior to April 1, 2017.
"These measures will reduce cost pressures on downstream sectors including textiles, packaging and pharmaceuticals, facilitate supply stability in the country and provide requisite clarity for investors contemplating investments in India," the readout said.
Defence Minister Singh appreciated the government's decision to impose a 25 per cent cap on the monthly increase in aviation turbine fuel prices for domestic operations, with effect from April 1.
This step will help protect the people from sudden increase in fares, he said.
The government has accorded highest priority to domestic LPG supply, with refinery production enhanced to fully meet consumption requirements, according to the readout.
"The IGoM was informed that there have been no reports of dry-out at LPG distributorships, and delivery of domestic LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) cylinders continues as per the normal schedule. The temporary supply concerns arose due to instances of hoarding and black marketing, which triggered panic buying in certain areas," it said.
The ministers were informed that strict enforcement action is being undertaken, with raids being carried out across multiple states and Union territories to curb hoarding and black marketing of LPG, the ministry said in the readout.
Action has also been taken against some LPG distributors who engaged in malpractices, it said.
"To support migrant labour and low-consumption households, the government is ensuring adequate availability of 5 kg free trade LPG cylinders, and since March 23, over 4.3 lakh such cylinders have been sold. Special focus is being given to states where demand is higher," it said.
The IGoM was apprised that industrial requirements dependent on commercial LPG are being met, with over 80 per cent of pre-crisis supply levels being maintained to ensure continuity of operations.
"Special meetings have been held with ministries and stakeholders of different industries to understand their demand and meet their needs. Oil PSUs are ensuring continued supply of Auto LPG across the country," the readout noted.
"However, some supply constraints are being faced by private operators due to their procurement challenges, which is why lines are being observed at PSU auto LPG pumps. Wherever the autos are dual feed and can use petrol, they are being encouraged to use petrol," it said.
