Maharashtra Government waives toll for vehicles plying to Konkan for Ganeshotsav

The Maharashtra government on Thursday, August 13, announced a toll waiver for the vehicles plying towards Konkan for Ganesh Chaturthi. Eknath Shinde, Cabinet Minister of Urban Development and Public Works informed of the same.

व्हिडीओ कॉन्फरन्सिंग च्या माध्यमातून माझ्या अध्यक्षतेखाली झालेल्या बैठकीत गणेशोत्सवानिमित्त कोकणात जाणाऱ्या चाकरमान्यांना दरवर्षीप्रमाणे टोल माफ करण्याबाबत निर्णय घेण्यात आला. pic.twitter.com/GbwEzh0uvu

— Eknath Shinde - एकनाथ शिंदे (@mieknathshinde) August 13, 2020

A meeting of the Public Works Department was held under the chairmanship of Shinde through video conferencing. Shambhuraj Desai, the minister of state for home, and other officials were present on the occasion in order to finalise the toll waiver. To avail the waiver, motorists will have to go to their local police station and register their details, including their name, address, vehicle owner’s name, vehicle registration number and the date of journey, in order to avail the toll waiver, that will be permitted by the issuance of a sticker.

Moreover, it will be mandatory to test for the coronavirus and get the e-pass before travelling as per the rules of the state government in view of the pandemic. Eknath Shinde also instructed the Public Works, Road Development Corporation, Regional Transport Officer and Police Officer to coordinate and extend best cooperation to the citizens going to their villages for Ganeshotsav.

Apart from that, ST buses have been made available for reservation for employees going to Konkan from August 13 to August 21 as per the instructions of the government. However, ST has set some conditions for this.

It will be mandatory for the concerned passengers to undergo RV-PCR swab test before the journey. If the test is negative, then the concerned person can travel. For this, buses have been made available at major bus stands in Mumbai, Thane and Palghar divisions.

Each year, thousands of people who are residents of Konkan visit their villages and towns in Raigad, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg districts of Konkan region for the festival. They either take the Mumbai-Goa highway (National Highway-66) or travel via the Mumbai-Pune expressway or Kolhapur-Bengaluru highway (to travel from Pune to Kolhapur), where tolls are collected.