New Delhi: Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari has suggested removing the physical entry fee booths at Delhi’s borders, saying they cause long delays, traffic jams, and waste people’s time. He called the current system “harassment” and compared it to “public loot.”
Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta and Lieutenant Governor V.K. Saxena agreed with the idea. They also supported finding new ways for the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) to earn money, as it currently collects 800–900 crore each year from these entry fees.
Gadkari suggested that the Delhi government could explore other revenue sources such as property development or a small charge on vehicles. He also said that collecting green cess or environment fees is unfair when the central government has already spent heavily on improving roads and highways.
Gadkari added that the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) might go to the Supreme Court to stop the collection of the green cess. Saxena replied that a solution could be found without going to court.
MCD officials expressed concern that stopping the entry fee would impact their annual budget of 5,000 crore.
The meeting was also attended by Delhi ministers and central officials. They reviewed highway projects and agreed to move to a Multi-Lane Free Flow (MMLF) system to avoid physical toll booths.
NHAI will conduct a study on building a tunnel from Gyarah Murti to Vasant Kunj, which could ease traffic on Sardar Patel Marg. Another study will look at a possible tunnel between Sarai Kale Khan and IGI Airport.
NHAI will also take over three highway stretches:
-
Haryana-Delhi Border to Punjabi Bagh (18.5 km)
-
Ashram to Badarpur (7.5 km)
-
Mehrauli to Gurgaon Border (8.5 km)
These roads will be made signal-free. Delhi’s PWD will take care of service roads and drains along them.
The Delhi government will use central funds to finish service roads along UER-II.
After the meeting, the CM said projects worth 35,000 crore are ongoing in Delhi. This includes a 7-km tunnel from Shiv Murti to Nelson Mandela Road and an elevated road from INA to IGI Airport. She added that NHAI is now handling drainage around highways, which will reduce problems caused by multiple agencies. Road bridges worth 150 crore have also been approved. She thanked the central government for completing 1.25 lakh crore worth of projects in Delhi.
