Protesters Launch Hunger Strike Over Toll Tax in Mansehra

Residents in Ghazikot, including traders and other locals, initiated a hunger strike on Wednesday to protest toll collection at Khatain Da Galla, located on the Karakoram Highway near the Mansehra-Abbottabad border. They demanded the closure of this toll point, citing an agreement that the district administration had approved in exchange for widening the Karakoram Highway and constructing infrastructure such as underpasses and overhead bridges in Mansehra city and its surrounding regions.

Malik Waheed, a local, stated that these promised improvements had not yet been executed. He explained that the National Highway Authority (NHA) had provided a surety bond to the Peshawar High Court's Abbottabad circuit bench, promising to invest toll revenue into these projects. Waheed alleged that the NHA collects toll tax at six points within a five-kilometer stretch along the Karakoram Highway and Hazara Expressway.

The protesters emphasized that this toll imposes an additional financial burden on daily commuters traveling between Abbottabad and Mansehra. Three groups reportedly secured the toll collection contract, and one of these groups allegedly stormed the facility, opening fire to seize control.