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Do you ever travel on the National Highway, wait for your turn in long queues at the toll plaza, and see vehicles with ‘VIP’ boards galloping by without paying toll, and wonder when this free journey will stop? If yes, then there is a very big and relief news for you. The government has now made up its mind to limit the toll tax exemption available on National Highways. This time the target is not on anyone else, but on the top secretaries of the government. Very soon the list of influential people going on the highway without paying toll is going to get smaller.
What is the new master plan of the government?
Those traveling on the national highways of the country are going to see a major administrative change in the coming days. A high level committee constituted by the Central Government has recommended that the existing list of vehicles exempted from toll tax be shortened.
According to sources, the first from this list ‘Secretaries to the Government of India’ The category can be removed. This simply means that in the coming time, even the country’s biggest government officials will have to pay toll tax on the highways from their own pockets like any common citizen. For this, the committee has sent a proposal to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways to make necessary amendments in the National Highway Fee Rules.
Current arrangement: Who gets free entry at toll plaza now?
Under the current rules, a total of 25 VIP category people and vehicles are completely exempted from tax at the toll plazas of the country. You can easily understand this arrangement from the table given below:
| Category | Major posts and vehicles currently exempted | future state (possible change) |
| Constitutional and political positions | President, Prime Minister, Governors of States, Chief Justice of India, Chief Ministers, Union Ministers, Members of Parliament (MP) and MLAs (MLAs). | Their free journey is expected to continue as before. |
| top administrative position | Secretaries to the Government of India, Chief Secretaries of States | As per the committee’s recommendation, this category of leaves can be cut first. |
| Emergency and Security Services | Defense Personnel, Army Vehicles, Central and State Armed Forces, Fire Brigades, Ambulances and Hearses | Their free entry will remain completely intact. |
| Highway Operations | National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) or government vehicles engaged in inspection and survey | Considering the need of work, they will continue to get relaxation. |
Why did the committee recommend shortening the VIP list?
Main arguments of the committee:
The government’s high-level committee believes that in the last few years, the list of categories availing the benefit of toll exemption has become very long. This not only causes huge loss to the government’s revenue (Toll Revenue), but the general public also has to wait unnecessarily long at the toll plaza. The committee clearly says that many administrative posts should be completely removed from the ‘exempt category’ list. While on one hand this will curb the VIP culture in the country, on the other hand there will be a good increase in toll collection.
What effect will this new rule have on the general public?
If you are a common driver and are wondering whether this change will make any difference to your pocket or your journey, then you do not need to panic at all. This rule is being changed only for those people who are holding big government and administrative positions and till now were enjoying free travel without paying toll.
For the general public, the rules of toll tax and FASTag will remain exactly the same as before. Rather, a positive aspect of this change will be that the amount received in the form of toll tax from big authorities will allow the government to accumulate more funds for highway maintenance, safety and construction of new roads.
When can these new rules be implemented on the ground?
These important recommendations of the high-level committee have been handed over to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways. Now the Ministry has started making legal and technical preparations internally to amend the National Highway Fee Rules.
It is expected that very soon this proposal will get the final approval from the Cabinet, after which a new official notification will be issued by the Ministry. As soon as it is implemented, a big and historic change will be seen at the toll plazas of all the national highways of the country, which can prove to be a great step towards equality in the country.
