New Delhi:
In a major relief for commuters on the busy Delhi-Gurgaon expressway, toll plazas in 12 of the 16 lanes, which had been causing huge traffic snarls on it, will be dismantled as the legal dispute over the plazas ended today under the supervision of the Delhi High Court.
The High Court today recorded the consent order in terms of tripartite settlement arrived at among the National Highway Authority of India, Delhi-Gurgaon Super Connectivity Ltd (DGSCL) and the lead financier of the project.
The terms of the settlement, recorded by Justice Manmohan Singh in the consent order, would lead to dismantling of 12 toll plazas out of the 16 on the expressway.
The court, however, concurred with the plea of the National Highway Authority of India that the South Delhi Municipal Corporation and SMS Infrastructure Limited, which has been awarded a contract for three years by the civic body, can be allowed to use the remaining four toll plazas for levying entry tax from commercial vehicles coming to Delhi.
The National Highway Authority of India and DGSCL were embroiled in a bitter legal battle ever since the highways authority issued a termination notice to the company last year over frequent complaints of inordinate delays at the toll plaza.
The highways authority also found irregularities in the manner in which the DGSCL raised loans from financial institutions.