Efforts to negotiate the continuation of toll exemption for vehicles under the jurisdiction of Kota Zilla Panchayat at Sastana toll plaza faced setbacks during talks held at the Brahmavar Taluk office on Monday. Representatives including the tahsildar, inspector, and toll officers were unable to reach an agreement, prompting plans for further discussions on Tuesday.
On Saturday, leaders of the Highway Awareness Committee and local residents staged a protest at the Sastana Toll plaza to highlight their concerns.
Inspector Diwakar P M of Brahmavar engaged in discussions with officials on Monday, assuring to address the issue. Subsequently, a meeting was convened at the Tahsildar office, led by Tahsildar Srikanta S Hegde and the inspector.
During the meeting, committee president Shyamsundara Nayari outlined the community’s grievances and advocated for the continuation of toll exemption, a benefit secured through past struggles since 2018.
Pritam Ganguly, a representative of Highway Construction 1, contractor for the toll, responded citing national highway rules mandating locals pay Rs. 310 per month for toll passage. He emphasized compliance with highway department regulations.
As no satisfactory resolution was reached, the meeting was adjourned until Tuesday, with plans to engage with the National Highway engineer for further deliberations.
Among the attendees were Sub-inspector Madhu from Brahmavar police station, Tejaswi from Kota police station, as well as committee leaders Pratap Shetty, Vithala Pujari, Alvin Andrade, Nagaraja Ganiga, and Dinesh Ganiga.
