Cuttack/Baripada: Toll collection at the Jharpokharia Toll Plaza on National Highway-49 in Mayurbhanj district was challenged through a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) petition at the Orissa High Court citing the dangerous and unsafe condition of an adjoining stretch of the highway.
The petition was filed by a lawyer, Advocate Akash Sharma, who sought court directions against what he described as unlawful toll collection on a highway stretch that remains incomplete and unsafe, particularly at the Dwarasuni Ghat section. Sharma argued that road users are being compelled to pay a toll despite the absence of a functional and safe roadway.
The petition also relied on accident data to highlight the consequences of the road’s condition. It claims that over 500 accidents and 100 deaths have been recorded on the stretch in recent years, with ambulances, school buses and commercial vehicles facing serious risks.
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“The Dwarasuni Ghat stretch is neither safe nor motorable. The highway is damaged, hazardous, unrepaired, full of potholes, craters, obstructed by ongoing construction, and admittedly incomplete. Therefore, the continued levy of toll/user fee at Jharpokharia Plaza amounts to unlawful exaction,” the petition stated.
The petitioner alleged that public transport services have been disrupted due to the poor condition of the road. It claimed that several operators have either suspended or drastically reduced services, isolating nearby villages and affecting livelihoods. “The road has been described as a ‘death trap’ and ‘collapsed highway’, with frequent media coverage highlighting the urgent need for restoration,” the petition added.
Sharma alleged that despite admitting that the road was incomplete, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has continued toll collection by treating the stretch as finished, while ignoring the unsafe and unfinished ghat section within the toll plaza’s coverage zone.
The plea argued that users cannot be segregated from the unsafe section while accessing the tolled corridor. The petitioner further argued that charging tolls under such conditions is arbitrary and unfair. “The imposition of financial burden upon citizens who are compelled to risk their lives on a dilapidated highway is manifestly arbitrary and shocks the conscience,” said the petition.
Sharma further contended that safe travel is a core part of the right to life under Article 21 (right to life) of the Constitution, and that forcing people to pay tolls on an unsafe road infringes their right to life and dignity. The PIL also challenged the very nature of the toll as a ‘user fee’, arguing that collecting tolls without providing the promised road facilities defeats the basic quid pro quo required to justify such a charge. “Toll is not a tax; it is a user fee. In absence of a motorable road, the legal basis for levying the fee collapses entirely,” said the petition. On the basis of these allegations, the petition requested the Court to suspend toll collection or reduce the toll fee levied at the Jharpokharia Toll Plaza until the highway is fully completed.
