Nattika toll collection: Minister steps in as UDF protest turns tense over incomplete road

Thrissur: Toll collection in Nattika, Thrissur, was suspended on Thursday following protests by UDF activists against collecting toll on an unfinished road.

Public Works Minister P K Basheer directed officials to temporarily stop the toll collection after reports of possible traffic congestion and continued protests in the area. Reports from the district collector and police indicated that starting toll collection could lead to traffic jams.

Construction of the service road and the approach road to the bridge on the Kodungallur-Kaprikad stretch is still incomplete.

UDF activists had been protesting since morning, saying toll collection should not begin until the road work was completed. Police stopped their protest march, following which the activists staged a sit-in on the road.

Tensions rose when police attempted to arrest the protesters. Several Congress leaders and workers were removed from the site and arrested.

Toll collection had briefly started despite the protests, with vehicles being charged through the FASTag system. Congress leaders Jose Vallur and Shobha Subin, along with public representatives C M Noushad and P Vinu, were among those arrested. They were later taken to the police station in police vehicles.

More activists arrived at the site after news of the arrests spread, prompting a larger police presence in the area.

The situation eased after Minister P K Basheer intervened and ordered the suspension of toll collection. The decision is temporary and follows concerns over both the unfinished road work and the possibility of traffic congestion.