Through the PIL they want to draw the attention of the court to the lackadaisical attitude of the state and Central governments.
Finding no respite forthcoming from air pollution caused by the stationery vehicles at Kherki Dhaula toll plaza and delay in completion of Dwarka Expressway, the DXP Welfare Association (DXPWA) has decided to file public interest litigation (PIL) in the Punjab and Haryana High Court.
Through the PIL they want to draw the attention of the court to the lackadaisical attitude of the state and Central governments towards lakhs of households living in the vicinity of Dwarka Expressway forced to inhale poisonous fumes day in and day out.
Addressing a press conference, members of the DXPWA shared their concern over the health hazard posed by thousands of vehicles emitting noxious fumes standing at the toll plaza awaiting their turn for clearance. They pointed out that not only the residents of the new sectors but also workers of IMT Manesar suffering from the air pollution.
Addressing the media, Harinder Dhingra, said, a right to information (RTI) activist, "We had filed an RTI query to know the status of fund collected at the Kherki toll and found that the required amount of funds has already been recovered by the toll operators, MCPEL. The cost of Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway is Rs 555 crore while the expenditure incurred against the change of scope of Rs 113 crore was in addition to the earlier cost. We will file the PIL by next week."
The RTI reply also revealed that the total amount of revenue generated by the plaza since the promoter’s project was awarded to them was Rs 697.80 crore. The project was awarded to the promoters in 2014.
Yashesh Yadav, president of DXP Welfare Association, said, "We have been protesting against the toll since 2016, we have even held a hunger strike in January this year. But there has been no response from the Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar or Minister for Road Transport & Highways Nitin Gadkari. Now, we have no option but to knock the door of the court."
The members of the association also raised the issue of completion of the Dwarka Expressway stretch from national highway (NH) 8 to the airport. They informed about their plan to take their movement to next level and launch a mega campaign soon to connect with all the stakeholders having a grouse against the toll, be it pollution or traffic jams.
Earlier this month, the residents had initiated a miss-call campaign to mobilise support for their long-standing demand to shift the toll plaza. Pradip Rahi, General Secretary of DXP Welfare Association said, "We have launched the miss-call no. 9697981197 a week ago to evoke public support for toll removal. So far, we have received more than 10000 responses from it. We are expecting it to cross 1 lakh mark. This data will be produced along with the PIL in the court to highlight the grievances of the common man.”
