Samiti threatens agitation seeking removal of toll plaza

While demanding relaxation in paying toll for motorists from Mangaluru and Udupi at the Hejmady and Surathkal toll plazas on the National Highway 66, members of the Tollgate Virodhi Horata Samiti, Surathkal, said on Friday that they will soon launch an agitation demanding the closure of the toll gate near the National Institute of Technology Karnataka, Surathkal. Talking to reporters, Muneer Katipalla, convenor of the samiti, said that following agitation by the samiti in 2018 the State government proposed closure of the toll gate at Surthkal and merge it with the toll gate at Hejmady, which is nine kilometres away, on the National Highway 66. Though the Union Government agreed to the proposal, no action has been taken so far in merging the toll gates. Toll continues to be collected at the NIT-K toll gate by offering relaxation to Mangaluru motorists.