Panniyankara toll company backtracks on local concession agreement, sparking fresh protests
The operator of the Panniyankara toll plaza on the Vadakkenchery-Mannuthy national highway has ignited fresh public outrage by backtracking on an agreement to grant local toll concessions, a decision that had been brokered just a day earlier by the District Collector, MPs, and MLAs. Despite the
The operator of the Panniyankara toll plaza on the Vadakkenchery-Mannuthy national highway has ignited fresh public outrage by backtracking on an agreement to grant local toll concessions, a decision that had been brokered just a day earlier by the District Collector, MPs, and MLAs. Despite the
The operator of the Panniyankara toll plaza on the Vadakkenchery-Mannuthy national highway has ignited fresh public outrage by backtracking on an agreement to grant local toll concessions, a decision that had been brokered just a day earlier by the District Collector, MPs, and MLAs. Despite the
The operator of the Panniyankara toll plaza on the Vadakkenchery-Mannuthy national highway has ignited fresh public outrage by backtracking on an agreement to grant local toll concessions, a decision that had been brokered just a day earlier by the District Collector, MPs, and MLAs.
Despite the high-level consensus, four-wheeled auto-rickshaws that arrived at the toll plaza were denied free passage. Toll company staff claimed that their higher management was unaware of the decisions taken during the meeting and that no official emails regarding the agreement had been received.
Local operators threaten family blockades
Members of the Panthalampadam People's Forum personally delivered a copy of the official collectorate decisions to the toll office, but officials refused to implement them immediately. Infuriated by this uncooperative stance, four-wheeled auto-rickshaw operators have warned that they will blockade the toll plaza along with their families if they are not issued the promised free passes, which are meant to treat four-wheelers on par with regular three-wheeled auto-rickshaws.
School transport targeted
Meanwhile, fresh allegations have surfaced that school vehicles are being unfairly targeted for toll collection. A local school bus from Vadakkenchery was forced to pay the fee; however, when the vehicle owner strongly objected, toll officials reportedly backed down and offered a refund to de-escalate the situation.
The policy meeting on the dispute was attended by prominent leaders, including K Radhakrishnan MP, PP Sumod MLA, TM Sashi MLA, Block Panchayat President T Kannan, Vadakkenchery Panchayat President C Prasad, and Kannambra Panchayat President P Vijayakumari, alongside NHAI officials and toll company representatives. Despite this, ground-level staff insisted they are bound only by corporate directives, not by resolutions passed by elected public representatives.
Demands to blacklist the operator
The Vadakkenchery Janakeeya Vedhi (People's Forum) has strongly condemned the toll company’s actions, calling the official discussions a farce. They pointed out that a multi-party decision to allow free passage for residents living within a 9.4 km radius across six local panchayats has been blatantly ignored. Even a promise to exempt residents within a 7.5 km radius was violated, and the controversial rule requiring vehicle owners to renew local passes every three months remains unresolved. The forum has demanded that the toll operator be blacklisted for stalling local flyover and national highway construction work, warning that they will launch an indefinite blockade if the situation is not rectified immediately.