Shimla, February 23 Hundreds of truck operators took to the streets in the Solan district of Himachal Pradesh on Monday against the increase in toll charges collected at entry points from vehicles registered outside the state, and warned of blocking the national highway if the decision is not reversed.
The Congress government, led by Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, approved the toll tax barrier policy 2026-27 during a cabinet meeting on February 13. According to this policy, light motor vehicles (LMVs), including cars, jeeps, and vans, will be charged Rs 170 instead of Rs 70 from April 1.
These increased entry toll prices will also affect tourists and freight rates. There are 55 toll barriers in the state. Entry fees will be collected at the barriers, and Fastag has been made mandatory.
The truck operators held a massive protest at a barrier located in the Nalagarh tehsil of Bagheri town, near Kiratpur Sahib in Punjab, against the increased vehicle entry fee, and shouted slogans and strongly condemned the government's decision.
The protesters pointed out that commercial vehicles like trucks have also been subject to a steep increase, and the tax for oversized vehicles with seven or more axles will be charged Rs 900 per day instead of Rs 720.
The increase in entry tax has severely impacted the earnings of truck operators, increased transportation costs, and made it extremely difficult to visit relatives and conduct business, said truck operators Raj Kumar and Avtar Singh.
If the government does not immediately withdraw this increase, the truck drivers will be forced to block the national highway and hold a sit-in protest in the coming days, disrupting traffic throughout the region, said truck operator Balveer Singh and dozens of other operators.
Local residents also said that this decision is a burden on the common man.
The truck operators said that the tourism and transportation sectors are being adversely affected, while the government is harassing the public in the name of increasing revenue. The protesters appealed to the Sukhu government to withdraw the decision and said that otherwise the agitation will intensify.
The Himachal Pradesh Private Bus Operators' Association and the Himachal unit of the Bus and Car Operators' Confederation of India jointly lodged a strong protest against the proposed increase in toll tax rates in the state on February 19 and demanded its immediate withdrawal.