NICE Toll Collection Reaches Rs. 47.56 bn, Kumaraswamy Alleges
Addressing a press conference at the Janata Dal (Secular) headquarters in Bengaluru, Kumaraswamy said the original project cost was Rs. 15.84 bn. He stated that annual toll receipts rose from Rs. 55.9 mn in 2008-09 to Rs. 7.35 bn in 2024-25. He linked the collection to a Toll Concession Agreement signed in 2000 between the state Public Works Department and NICE.
According to Kumaraswamy, the agreement required a four-lane concrete road, service roads and maintenance areas to be completed before toll collection began. He said these conditions had not been fully met when toll collection started in 2008. He also referred to a Karnataka High Court judgment dated July 29, which he said found that changes to the original agreement through an Outline Development Plan amounted to a violation of statutory and constitutional provisions.
Kumaraswamy alleged that the project alignment was altered without Cabinet approval, increasing land allocation for the Peripheral Road from 2,193 acres to 2,747 acres and for the toll road from 6,999 acres to 9,468 acres. He also raised allegations of roads being constructed over lake areas, citing a 2021 complaint based on locations identified through the Dishaank application.
He said NICE had also generated Rs. 3.84 bn through land sales, Rs. 1.08 bn as advances for joint development and construction projects, and Rs. 3.38 bn from convention centres. Kumaraswamy noted that the Supreme Court had not stayed the High Court judgment and had listed NICE's challenge for November 2, with 25 lawyers appearing. He urged the state government to act under the court proceedings and original agreements, rejecting suggestions that toll collection could continue for another 10 years.