Jagdish Shettar Requests Nitin Gadkari to Stop Toll Collection on Belagavi Khanapur and Belagavi Sankeshwar Karad Roads
Jagdish Shettar, a member of the Lok Sabha, has written to Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, asking for a stop to toll collection on the Belagavi-Sankeshwar-Kolhapur-Karad stretch of the Bangalore-Pune National Highway. Shettar pointed out that road widening work is causing heavy traffic jams, making travel much slower for commuters.
MP Jagdish Shettar's Letter read, "It's a known fact that the road widening work is ongoing along the Belagavi-Sankeshwar-Kolhapur-Karad stretch of the Bangalore-Pune National Highway. This happens to be one of the busiest traffic stretches. However, due to the ongoing widening work, commuters are facing a suffocating experience because of traffic jams resulting in slow vehicle movement on the highways. This has nearly doubled the time taken to reach their destinations. Additionally, vehicle maintenance costs have reportedly increased due to poor road conditions.
In this context, the commuting residents of my Lok Sabha constituency, Belagavi, Karnataka, have expressed strong opposition to the collection of tolls at Hattargi Plaza in Hukkeri taluka of Belagavi district. A similar situation prevails along the Belagavi-Panjim National Highway in Khanapur taluka, which is also undergoing upgrades, resulting in unmotorable road conditions. Despite these issues, tolls are still being collected at the Ganibail Toll Plaza, leading to numerous complaints from the public. The general demand is to stop toll collection until the roads are improved, with allegations that tolls are being charged well before the actual commencement of road work.
I would like to highlight specific stretches that need immediate attention: the road between Ramnagar to Honakal Cross, Khanapur Maratha Mandal to Karambal Cross, and the service road from Hattaragunji Cross to Ganebail Toll Plaza, all of which remain incomplete. The work on the Honkal to Halaga bypass is also underway.
In light of the public complaints pouring in from various quarters of my parliamentary constituency, who frequently travel on these roads, I personally request that you consider the public's appeal to halt toll collection until the road stretches are completed. I urge you to issue the necessary instructions to the concerned authorities at the earliest."
Add a Comment