Vehicles for physically challenged to be exempted from toll tax across India

New Delhi: Physically challenged persons driving specially designed vehicles have been exempted from paying toll tax.

"Vehicles specially designed for persons with disabilities will not be required to pay toll fee," a Road Transport and Highways Ministry official told PTI. The fee waiver has been introduced at 63 toll plazas and would be implemented at all booths across the country, the official said.

The Road Transport and Highways Ministry has come out with a notification in this regard which says that "specially designed and constructed for use of a person with some physical defect or disability" will be exempted from fee at toll plazas.

The government said the rules to amend the National Highways Fee (Determination of Rates and Collection), Rules, 2008 were framed in exercise with the powers conferred by Section 9 of the National Highways Act. Some automobile makers like Maruti manufactures cars with special features like hand-operated or automatic clutch and gear for the physically challenged.

Globally many cities have exempted people with disabilities from paying toll charges. India, as per information, houses about 27 million persons with disabilities which constitute about 2 per cent of the population.

However, only a minuscule number of the physically challenged persons own specially altered vehicles.