Former chief minister and Leader of the Opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda on Thursday alleged that the BJP government was continuously burdening the public through repeated hikes in toll charges.
Reacting to the recent increase in toll rates at plazas in Karnal, Kurukshetra, Hisar, Panipat and Jhajjar, Hooda claimed that Haryana records the highest toll collection in the country.
He said that motorists were already reeling under the burden of high taxes and rising fuel and ethanol prices. He alleged that the government had further increased the burden on the public by raising toll charges for cars, jeeps and other commercial vehicles by Rs 10 to Rs 30.
"Rates have been hiked for the second time in three months at toll plazas, including the Thana toll plaza on the Hisar-Chandigarh National Highway. Similarly, at the Ramayan toll plaza in Hisar, rates for cars, buses, trucks and commercial vehicles have been increased by Rs 5 to Rs 30. As a result, travelling within and outside Haryana has become more expensive," Hooda said.
Citing official data, Hooda claimed that Haryana was witnessing the highest toll collection in the country. He alleged that more toll was being collected in Haryana than in Gujarat, despite the latter being nearly three times larger. "While Gujarat has 62 toll plazas, Haryana has 75, where people are being burdened with toll charges," he said.
Referring to information shared by Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari in the Lok Sabha, Hooda claimed that toll collection in Gujarat declined by Rs 1,928.57 crore in October 2025 compared to the previous year, while Haryana recorded an increase of Rs 368.57 crore during the same period. He further claimed that Haryana has the country's highest per capita toll collection at Rs 917.1.
Hooda also said the annual toll collection per kilometre in Haryana stands at Rs 0.69 crore, which he claimed is the highest in the country. Referring to the National Highways Fee (Determination of Rates and Collection) Rules, 2008, he said the minimum distance between two toll plazas on a national highway should be 60 km. However, he alleged that in Haryana, the distance between some toll plazas is only 45 km.
Hooda further claimed that toll collections in Haryana had increased from Rs 461.88 crore in 2014-15 to Rs 2,324.95 crore in 2025-26, more than a five-fold rise, according to data presented in Parliament.
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