The foreign affairs and external trade ministry has received a draft Standard Operating Procedure from the Indian government concerning the use of FASTag by Bhutanese vehicles plying along Indian Highways. FASTag is the Indian electronic toll collection system that allows toll payments using a prepaid or savings account linked to the system. Currently, Bhutanese vehicles cannot use the system. They pay in cash and are charged double for payments in ngultrum. The foreign affairs and external trade minister said once the SOP has been jointly endorsed and both sides have completed the necessary domestic arrangements, the matter is expected to be resolved.
Currently, Bhutanese vehicles travelling along India’s Assam and West Bengal Highways are charged a double toll fee on ngultrum payments. The issue still remains unresolved five months after the government assured of addressing it.
During the question hour session in the National Assembly today,
Trashigang’s Radhi-Sakteng MP, Tashi Tenzin, asked the foreign affairs and external trade minister when Bhutanese travellers can realistically expect the issue to be resolved.
During the Third Session, the Foreign Affairs and External Trade Minister had assured that the issue would be resolved within about two months. However, as reflected in recent news reports, the issue still remains unresolved,” said Tashi Tenzin, MP, Radhi-Sakteng, Trashigang, National Assembly.
The government, during the summer session of the parliament, assured that discussions are ongoing with the Indian counterparts to allow Bhutanese vehicles to use FASTag system.
Similarly, several other MPs said the government must explore other options to address the issue immediately while working on the SOP. They also demanded a clear timeline for the SOP’s implementation.
“A lot of heavy vehicles travel between Samtse and Samdrup Jongkhar carrying items for the industrial area. There are six toll plazas, and if a vehicle has to pay six thousand along with the 50 per cent extra fee on ngultrum payment, this amounts to over 15,000 ngultrum. While this might be included in the SOP, the government need to have bilateral talks with officials from Assam and West Bengal to resolve the issue immediately,” said Tshering Penjor, MP, Dewathnag-Gomdar, Samdrup Jongkhar, National Assembly.
“As I listen to the same issue being raised again today, it feels as though the situation remains unchanged and that the numerous deliberations have not helped resolve it. We have many civil servants; the minister is not working alone. Several relevant agencies and thousands of civil servants can work on this. So, if clear instructions are given, the concern is not about being unable to provide a timeline for the SOP, but rather about whether the work is actually being carried out,” said Rinchen Wangdi, MP, Bartsham-Shongphu, Trashigang, National Assembly.
“After being discussed across three sessions with the same response each time, it raises questions about whether the government is truly working on the issue. This is something that could be discussed between the two countries in a day and resolved within a month when it comes to toll fees. I do not see the issue as particularly broad or complex,” said Naiten Wangchuk, MP, Monggar, National Assembly.
In response, the minister said the ministry received the draft SOP last week. According to the minister, the SOP details the procedural and operational requirements for extending FASTag services to Bhutanese vehicles, including the roles and responsibilities of Bhutanese banks. There will also be a trial run once both sides come to an agreement.
He also added that the government had explored alternative options, including discussions with relevant authorities, who indicated they had limited control since the road falls under India’s National Highways Authority. Therefore, integrating the systems was identified as the most feasible solution to address the issue.
“The reason we are in the SOP process is not that we avoided exploring options beyond the diplomatic channel; this is precisely why we are in this process. The Indian government has also assisted us. Since the Indian government needs to consult multiple relevant agencies, it has taken considerable time,” said DN Dhungyel, Foreign Affairs and External Trade Minister.
Furthermore, the minister said, moving forward, the Bhutanese government will also need to coordinate with several agencies, which means it would be difficult to provide a clear timeline for the SOP’s implementation.