Shillong: The Supreme Court pressed the National Highways Authority of India on Thursday to use toll plaza cameras for surveillance. Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta want dedicated monitoring rooms to stop illegal parking and encroachments on national highways. Road safety is a mess. The bench asked, "Why can't you think of a system of monitoring through cameras? A separate arrangement can be made for monitoring at all toll plazas."
Amicus curiae A.N.S. Nadkarni told the court that vehicles parked illegally cause too many deadly crashes. The NHAI claims it already ordered regular patrols to clear the roads. However, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, the Ministry of Home Affairs, and the Tamil Nadu government failed to file required affidavits. They must submit these documents before the next hearing on October 6.
These proceedings started after horrific accidents in November 2025. A crash in Phalodi, Rajasthan, killed at least 18 people when a tempo traveller hit a stationary truck. Another accident on the Telangana-Bijapur highway took 20 lives. The court previously declared that safe passage is part of the right to life under Article 21.
Current orders include a total ban on parking heavy vehicles on highway shoulders. The court also wants District Highway Safety Task Forces and Advanced Traffic Management Systems in place. Officials must finish nationwide surveys to pull down illegal roadside structures and dhabas. The clock is ticking on highway safety.
Comments