Daijiworld Media Network - Mangaluru (SP)

Mangaluru, Jan 15: The deadline given to vehicle owners to fix FASTag to their vehicles for faster passage through tollgates will end today. From January 16, vehicles without FASTag will be required to pay double the normal charges at tollgates.

FASTag deadline had been postponed thrice in the past. As per an estimate, 65 per cent of vehicles in the state have FASTag now. As many as 15 per cent of vehicles including ambulances, fire extinguishers, VVIP vehicles etc are exempted from toll fee payment. Vehicles without FASTag will have to move through cash lanes.

There has been a decline in people willing to acquire FASTags. However, a few people who have booked for FASTag, who are yet to get their FASTag will have to pay extra at the tollgates. It has been decided not to allow vehicles not having FASTag on FASTag paths even when there is a rush in the cash lane, although it was allowed in the past.

Chief manager of National Highways Authority of India, Sridhar, said that with the deadline for FASTag ending on January 15, vehicles will have to move on specific lanes earmarked for them in the tollgates. He said that so far there is no information about the extension of the deadline for FASTag.