Srinagar/ May, 9 : Amid continuing protests against the imposition of toll tax at Sangam in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district the Jammu and Kashmir Governor Satya Pal Malik on Thursday assured that locals would be exempted from the tax.
Inaugurating the TRC grade separator the Governor said “there won’t be any toll tax on the locals. We have taken up the issue with the central government but due to the ongoing election process things have slowed up a bit.”As the toll plaza has been made operational by the National Highway Authority of India in Sangam area of south Kashmir’s Anantnag district, the traders, commuters and transporters have refused to pay the tax.
A group of traders and transporters also submitted a memorandum to the Deputy Commissioner Anantnag demanding the rollback of the toll tax levied on the vehicles. Kashmir’s two largest regional parties, National Conference and the PDP have also demanded the rollback of the tax. NC has called the move ‘unfair and unjust” while the PDP said such a measure would hit the already economically downtrodden people hard.