Will you have to pay toll on DND flyway? Matter set for apex court hearing

The Supreme Court today said it would hear in July the matter related to the Allahabad High Court ruling which stated that no toll should be collected from the commuters using the Delhi-Noida Direct (DND) flyway. A bench of Justices Madan B Lokur and Deepak Gupta said that report filed in the matter by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) be kept in a sealed cover.

The apex court had in November last year asked the CAG to assist in the matter and verify the company's claim that the total cost of the project has not been recovered. During the hearing today, the bench said that it would not rely on the CAG's report as of now in the matter.

The Noida Toll Bridge Company Ltd (NTBCL) told the court that the CAG was originally not made a party in the PIL which was filed before the high court.

The counsel appearing for the firm said that following the high court's order, the company was not getting anything but its obligation to maintain the flyway stands.

On November 11, 2016, the apex court had said that the flyway would remain toll-free for commuters while disagreeing with the contention of NTBCL that its refusal to stay the high court verdict would cause irreparable loss to the firm.

The high court had on October 26, 2016, said no toll would be collected henceforth from those using the 9.2 km-long, eight-lane flyway.

The order was passed as the high court had allowed a PIL by the Federation of Noida Residents Welfare Association that had challenged the "levy and collection of toll in the name of user fee" by the NTBCL.

The firm has challenged the high court verdict in the top court, saying it did not take into account all aspects and factors such as interest on construction cost, depreciation and maintenance expenses, which come to around Rs 12.5 lakh per day, had not been duly considered.