NHAI floats Kukdola toll tender; MLFF to replace Kherki Daula

NHAI has floated a tender for a barrier-free multi-lane free-flow (MLFF) toll plaza at Kukdola near Pachgaon on the Delhi–Jaipur highway, according to a 30 Sep 2026 report by Hindustan Times. The proposed facility is intended to replace the existing Kherki Daula plaza, but the development is still at the tender stage: it does not announce an immediate toll change or a confirmed opening date for drivers.

The change: NHAI is seeking an MLFF system for the proposed Kukdola plaza on NH-48.
How it will work: Gantry-mounted cameras and FASTag equipment are designed to collect the fee without conventional toll cabins.
What stays the same now: Kherki Daula remains the current tolling point until the replacement is built and made operational.
What to watch: The tender award, construction, official fee notification and launch date will decide when the shift affects a journey.

Illustrative future MLFF toll gantry under construction on a divided Haryana highway

Illustrative AI-generated visual of a future barrier-free MLFF toll gantry; it is not a photograph of the proposed Kukdola site.

What NHAI’s Kukdola tender covers

The latest reported tender covers the technology and control infrastructure needed for contactless tolling at Kukdola. The system is expected to use a gantry over the carriageway, with automatic number plate recognition (ANPR), RFID readers linked to FASTag, radar, lidar and surveillance cameras. Vehicles would be identified while moving through the corridor, allowing the fee to be deducted electronically instead of making each vehicle stop at a booth.

That is different from a normal expansion of a toll plaza. The key change is the removal of the stop-and-pay interface. The tender report says the technical-bid process is the next visible milestone, while the successful bidder is expected to create and operate the MLFF system and its control centre. The Union road ministry had already listed the shifted Kherki Daula plaza, named “Kukrola” in its February 2026 parliamentary answer, among the fee plazas under bidding for barrier-free tolling.

What changes for Delhi–Jaipur highway users

For now, there is no need to treat the announcement as a closure notice or a new charge. Earlier reporting on the relocation said toll collection at Kherki Daula would stop only after the Kukdola facility becomes operational. The latest tender report also describes Kukdola as the proposed replacement, not as a live fee plaza. Drivers using the Delhi to Jaipur toll route should therefore continue checking the currently applicable toll points until NHAI publishes a formal operating notice.

The proposed site is reported to be about 12 km from the existing Kherki Daula plaza. That move could alter how the effective tollable distance is calculated for connected plazas, including Bijwasan on the Dwarka Expressway and Shahjahanpur on the Delhi–Jaipur highway. However, those are future fee implications, not revised rates announced in this tender. NHAI’s annual fee notification and any location-specific notification will be needed before a driver can calculate a new amount.

Until then, a valid FASTag and a balance that can cover the trip remain the practical basics. Readers planning a long drive can use the toll-charge calculator hub to estimate the existing route cost, but should recheck the result after any official fee revision. A barrier-free system may reduce stopping and queuing, yet it cannot guarantee a shorter journey when the surrounding highway is congested, construction is active or traffic is diverted.

Why the shift has taken years

The Kherki Daula relocation has been discussed for years. Hindustan Times reported that the move was announced in 2016 and received Union transport ministry approval in May 2025. Land acquisition, litigation, local protests, forest-clearance requirements and security concerns delayed the plan. Amar Ujala’s August report also said NHAI had begun the denotification process for the existing plaza and was moving the replacement towards Kukdola near Pachgaon.

The official project trail matters because a tender is not the same as an operational change. The February parliamentary answer shows that the shifted plaza was already part of the government’s barrier-free tolling pipeline. The September tender report shows a newer step: NHAI is now seeking the MLFF implementation package for the proposed location. The remaining steps are what determine when the public sees a change on the road.

What drivers should check next

Look for an official NHAI or MoRTH notice naming the launch date and the fee plaza’s commercial operation date.
Check whether a revised fee notification changes the amount or effective distance at linked plazas.
Do not assume that the proposed location means Kherki Daula has already shut or that tolls have been waived.
For the fuel side of a Delhi–Jaipur trip, compare the route’s running cost with the fuel-cost calculator; reduced idling and toll queues can affect time and fuel use, but the result depends on traffic and vehicle efficiency.

FuelPrice has also explained the wider barrier-free FASTag tolling rollout. Kukdola is a corridor-level example of that transition, not proof that every national-highway plaza will change on the same date.

Bottom line

NHAI’s Kukdola tender is a meaningful step towards moving the Kherki Daula toll operation to a contactless gantry-based system. For Delhi–Jaipur users, the likely benefit is less stopping at the plaza; the immediate reality is that the existing arrangement continues until construction, notification and commissioning are complete. Watch the official fee and launch notices before changing a route budget or assuming that a toll has moved.