No toll for poor highways or traffic chaos: HC orders, reminding NHAI its relationship with public is built on trust
The decision came from a division bench of Justices A Muhamed Mustaque and Harisankar V Menon, who were hearing several petitions against toll collection on the Edappally-Mannuthy stretch of NH 544.
Productivity Tool
Zero to Hero in Microsoft Excel: Complete Excel guide
By Metla Sudha Sekhar
View Program
Finance
Introduction to Technical Analysis & Candlestick Theory
By Dinesh Nagpal
View Program
Finance
Financial Literacy i e Lets Crack the Billionaire Code
By CA Rahul Gupta
View Program
Digital Marketing
Digital Marketing Masterclass by Neil Patel
By Neil Patel
View Program
Finance
Technical Analysis Demystified- A Complete Guide to Trading
By Kunal Patel
View Program
Productivity Tool
Excel Essentials to Expert: Your Complete Guide
By Study at home
View Program
Artificial Intelligence
AI For Business Professionals Batch 2
By Ansh Mehra
View Program
The court suspended toll collection for four weeks, stating: '... we order that the collection of user fees shall be suspended forthwith for four weeks, and we further order that the central government shall take appropriate decisions within the above period addressing the concern and grievance of the public...'
The suspension comes amid ongoing construction on the highway, including underpasses, flyovers, and drainage works, which has caused major traffic congestion and poor service road conditions.
'Tie of Public Trust' Must Not Be Broken
The bench underlined that while the public must pay tolls under normal conditions, the NHAI is obligated to maintain smooth and barrier-free roads.
Live Events
'This relationship between the public and the NHAI is bound by the tie of public trust. The moment it is breached or violated, the right to collect toll fees from the public created through statutory provisions cannot be forced on the public,' the court said.
It also added that all public infrastructure projects carry a duty to prioritise public interest: 'This responsibility necessitates effective public management and oversight of such infrastructure projects. The contractual obligations entered into by the State with private partners cannot absolve the State of its foundational duty arising from the public trust doctrine.'
Toll Cannot Be Justified If Public Benefit Is Denied
The NHAI argued that toll collection is governed by contracts with private partners and that any stoppage could lead to legal claims. However, the court strongly rejected this: 'No agreement between the State and a private entity can override the imperative to protect public interest.'
'If the public is not receiving the intended benefit of road usage in return for the user fees imposed, the State cannot compel payment of such a fee solely based on a private contractual arrangement.'
The judges reminded that the legal right to collect tolls comes from statutory provisions, not just private contracts.
'Consequently, in the absence of compliance with the objectives underlying the imposition of such fees, the National Highways Authority or its concessionaire cannot assert a right to demand or collect the same.'
Central Government Must Step In
The court expressed concern over the NHAI's lack of action since public complaints began in February 2025: 'We note with concern the total apathy displayed by the National Highways Authority in addressing the grievances raised, despite multiple opportunities having been made available to them... no meaningful steps were taken.'
The bench said there were 'no managerial standards' from the Centre to handle such issues and stressed the need for public accountability.
'In such circumstances, we are of the considered view that the collection of toll shall remain suspended until the central government, in consultation with the National Highways Authority, chief secretary of the state and concessionaire, takes appropriate remedial action addressing the public grievance.'
'In a situation like this, in what manner the toll fee has to be levied is for the central government to decide; whether a pro rata deduction has to be given, or the levy of the fee be suspended till measures are taken...'
Inputs from PTI
Economic Times WhatsApp channel
)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
27 minutes ago
- Time of India
"In Op Sindoor, we played chess:" Gen Upendra Dwivedi at inauguration of 'Agnishodh' at IIT Madras
Gen Upendra Dwivedi , Chief of Army Staff (COAS), inaugurated ' Agnishodh ' - the Indian Army Research Cell (IARC) at IIT Madras , marking a significant step towards self-reliance in defence technology . The initiative aims to upskill military personnel in emerging fields such as additive manufacturing, cybersecurity , quantum computing, wireless communication and unmanned systems, fostering a tech-enabled force. Productivity Tool Zero to Hero in Microsoft Excel: Complete Excel guide By Metla Sudha Sekhar View Program Finance Introduction to Technical Analysis & Candlestick Theory By Dinesh Nagpal View Program Finance Financial Literacy i e Lets Crack the Billionaire Code By CA Rahul Gupta View Program Digital Marketing Digital Marketing Masterclass by Neil Patel By Neil Patel View Program Finance Technical Analysis Demystified- A Complete Guide to Trading By Kunal Patel View Program Productivity Tool Excel Essentials to Expert: Your Complete Guide By Study at home View Program Artificial Intelligence AI For Business Professionals Batch 2 By Ansh Mehra View Program The collaboration will also extend to the IIT Madras Research Park, including partnerships with AMTDC and Pravartak Technologies Foundation. On the occasion, Dwivedi addressed the faculty and students on " Operation Sindoor - A New Chapter in India's Fight Against Terrorism," highlighting it as a calibrated, intelligence-led operation reflecting a doctrinal shift. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Undo He underlined the role of indigenous technology and precision military action in reinforcing India's proactive security posture. He also lauded the IIT faculty for their contribution to nation-building through academic excellence. During an address at IIT Madras, he said, "In Operation Sindoor, we played chess. We did not know what the enemy's next move was going to be, and what we were going to do. This is called the grey zone. Grey zone means that we are not going for the conventional operations. What we are doing is just short of a conventional operation. We were making the chess moves, and he (enemy) was also making the chess moves. Somewhere we were giving them the checkmate and somewhere we were going in for the kill at the risk of losing our own but that's life is all about." Live Events Speaking on the Operation, the COAS said, "What happened on 22 April in Pahalgam shocked the nation. On the 23rd, the next day itself, we all sat down. This was the first time that RM (Defence Minister Rajnath Singh) said, "Enough is enough". All three chiefs were very clear that something had to be done. The free hand was given, 'you decide what is to be done.' That is the kind of confidence, political direction and political clarity we saw for the first time. That is what raises your morale. That is how it helped our army commanders-in-chief to be on the ground and act as per their wisdom." "On the 25th, we visited the Northern Command, where we thought, planned, conceptualised and executed the seven targets out of the nine that were destroyed, and a lot of terrorists were killed. On April 29, we met the Prime Minister for the first time. It is important that how a small name Op Sindoor connects the whole nation. That is something which galvanised the whole nation. That is the reason the whole nation was saying why have you stopped? That question was being asked and it has been amply answered," Dwivedi added. (ANI)
Time of India
27 minutes ago
- Time of India
Trump endorses Lindsey Graham for 2026 Senate race during surprise call
US President Donald Trump gave his "full endorsement" to Senator Lindsey Graham for his 2026 re-election bid in South Carolina, surprising the Republican lawmaker with a personal phone call during a public gathering on Saturday. Graham, who is seeking a fifth term in the United States Senate after first being elected in 2002, was addressing supporters when Trump called and praised his long-time ally. Productivity Tool Zero to Hero in Microsoft Excel: Complete Excel guide By Metla Sudha Sekhar View Program Finance Introduction to Technical Analysis & Candlestick Theory By Dinesh Nagpal View Program Finance Financial Literacy i e Lets Crack the Billionaire Code By CA Rahul Gupta View Program Digital Marketing Digital Marketing Masterclass by Neil Patel By Neil Patel View Program Finance Technical Analysis Demystified- A Complete Guide to Trading By Kunal Patel View Program Productivity Tool Excel Essentials to Expert: Your Complete Guide By Study at home View Program Artificial Intelligence AI For Business Professionals Batch 2 By Ansh Mehra View Program "Lindsey, thank you so much, you've been my friend. I know you are in a big race, and I don't think it's going to be a contest, but I have a feeling you're going to do very well. You have for a long time. Lindsey Graham, just so you know, full endorsement. Trump's full endorsement. He's a great guy. Every time I needed him, he was there for me," Trump said over phone. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Play War Thunder now for free War Thunder Play Now Undo Reacting to the endorsement on social media platform X, Graham posted,"Thank you for your surprise call, Mr. President! With your support, I'll keep delivering the America First agenda to the great people of South Carolina. I'm glad to have been part of the most awesome six months in modern history led by President @realDonaldTrump." The 2026 United States Senate election in South Carolina is scheduled for November 3, 2026. Graham, a four-term incumbent, last won re-election in 2020 and remains a prominent Republican voice in the Senate. Live Events The endorsement also comes shortly after Graham engaged in foreign policy discussions involving India. On Saturday, India's Ambassador to the US, Vinay Mohan Kwatra, said he had spoken to Graham about New Delhi's perspective on energy security and the growing energy trade between India and the US. "Spoke to Senator @LindseyGrahamSC and shared with him the Indian perspective on our energy security, including increasing energy trade with the United States," Kwatra said in a post on X. Earlier this week, Graham had urged India to use its influence with Russia to help end the war in Ukraine, calling it one of the most significant steps to boost India-US ties. "As I have been telling my friends in India, one of the most consequential things they could do to improve India-U.S. relations is to help President Trump end this bloodbath in Ukraine," Graham posted on X last week.
Time of India
42 minutes ago
- Time of India
Trump's tech shift opens the way for India to do a UPI on AI
In the cacophony created by tariffs and Trump, a singular announcement by the US did not get even a fraction of the attention it deserves. The advance warning was in January, when Donald Trump penned his illegible scrawl on Executive Order 14179— Removing Barriers to American Leadership in AI, which overturned Joe Biden's cautious AI stance. Six months later on July 23, he followed it up with the main course by unveiling the AI Action Plan that outlined over 90 policy actions, heralding a no holds barred, full-throttle embrace of AI adventurism. It is a vision that prioritises computing power, private-sector leadership, and geopolitical dominance over the previous focus on ethical risks, AI safety, and algorithmic fairness. Productivity Tool Zero to Hero in Microsoft Excel: Complete Excel guide By Metla Sudha Sekhar View Program Finance Introduction to Technical Analysis & Candlestick Theory By Dinesh Nagpal View Program Finance Financial Literacy i e Lets Crack the Billionaire Code By CA Rahul Gupta View Program Digital Marketing Digital Marketing Masterclass by Neil Patel By Neil Patel View Program Finance Technical Analysis Demystified- A Complete Guide to Trading By Kunal Patel View Program Productivity Tool Excel Essentials to Expert: Your Complete Guide By Study at home View Program Artificial Intelligence AI For Business Professionals Batch 2 By Ansh Mehra View Program In one fell stroke, the largest AI superpower has pivoted from caution to acceleration, replacing Biden-era guardrails with an innovation-first doctrine. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Why Seniors Are Snapping Up This TV Box, We Explain! Techno Mag Learn More Undo It rests on three pillars: accelerating innovation, largely through deregulation; building national infrastructure, by streamlining permissions for data centres and AI research; and projecting US tech power globally, through export promotion and tighter control on rivals. The announcement was accompanied by three executive orders. One of them was against 'woke AI', making the battle explicitly cultural; while the other slashed data centre red tape; and the third boosted exports of the American AI stack globally, pointing towards a strategy to create a global standard. Live Events THE IMPACT The explosion of generative AI and ChatGPT had sparked a holy war between AI Boomers, who wanted unfettered expansion of AI, and the Doomers, who urged a careful, slower approach. With this order, it seems the former has scored a decisive victory. But this preference for breakneck speed has left many wondering: Where are the brakes? Even as there is something to be said for quickly building a technology which could have massive benefits for humanity across healthcare, education and climate, there is lots to worry about here. Yuval Noah Harari recently spoke about the trust paradox, where the AI superpowers do not trust one another and are racing to develop a powerful super intelligence before the other does, but are good to trust the AI superintelligence. In the near term, this US move shifts AI's focus from how it affects society and humanity, to how it can dominate markets, create shareholder value, and pit one nation against another. There is an explicit political aim to create bias, with its 'ideological neutrality' principle, and the US states are disincentivised to create their own guardrails with the threat to hold funds. Moving fast and breaking things is back in fashion. LESSONS FOR THE WORLD The AI Action Plan is a tectonic event, and its reverberations will be spread from its Washington epicentre not only to Silicon Valley, but beyond to the rest of the world. The implications for India will be particularly interesting, not only as an emerging AI power but as a Global South leader, and the host of the next big global AI gathering – the AI Impact Summit in February 2026. These new policies might turbocharge Big TechAI development and their stock prices and accelerate startup and venture activity along with unbridled AI infrastructure enhancement. However, the absence of regulatory guardrails could also expose society to increased misinformation, algorithmic harms and uncheckedcommercial surveillance. There is a very real risk that this economic acceleration could outpace ethical oversight, inviting public backlash. It would also put the spotlight on Europe. There will be pressure on regulators to loosen up, with European startups threatening to decamp to the US. But then this is also a real, long-term opportunity for the EU to be the custodian of 'trustworthy AI'. China and its AI companies could be winners here. Countering the US' unilateral stance, China has started taking the position of AI inclusivity, by pushing open source AI models and announcing a global Shanghai Initiative to form a World AI Cooperation Organisation . DeepSeek and other models have already demonOrganisation. DeepSeek a models ready demonstrated that it is catching up on AI leadership with the US, and its open source, inclusive stance could win over more allies. However, the statist, centralised control exerted by the Chinese Communist Party , with a focus on surveillance and control will be a deterrent for many. For the rest of the world, particularly in the Global South, this divergence presents a dilemma on who to follow. It is here that there is a unique opportunity for India, to reject this binary choice, balance ambition with caution, and carve out a 'third way' that emphasises ethical innovation, inclusive infrastructure and co-created governance. India has many advantages here: the world's largest democ- racy and a leader of the Global South, a strong tech ecosystem, and a much admired model in its Digital Public Infrastructure ( DPI ), which has effectively balanced innovation and social equity. I have written about this third way, what I call coined 'JanAI', where India leads with a DPI-like initiative to make AI and its applications a public good in India. Many countries are keen to emulate the DPI initiative; they will likely flock to a similar AI initiative leadership. It is also an opportune coincidence that India is hosting the AI Impact Summit in 2026, the largest such gathering of AI leaders. To emerge as a third pole, however, India must clarify its own AI stance, create a comprehensive AI regulatory framework, and make AI a 'national mission' as it did with the Green Revolution, population control, and, indeed, the DPI/DPG initiative. Focusing on AI for Good and AI for All, with ethical innovation, inclusive infrastructure, universal AI literacy and co-created governance with industry, academia and civil society will help it carve out this elusive 'middle path' and give it a legitimate platform to lead the rest of the world. In technology, it is often said the US innovates, Europe regulates, China replicates, and, often, India procrastinates. However, the game has changed. Trump's AI policy may indeed propel the US into a dominant position, but there it could be at a great social cost. As AI becomes the foundational infrastructure of this century, the rules we write today will shape everything from elections to employment to existential risk. India, with its demographic scale, digital backbone and convening power in 2026, has a once-in-a-generation chance to help the world write those rules—not in Washington, Shanghai or Brussels, but in New Delhi.
