The Indian Toll Act, which allowed tolls to be levied on roads and bridges built with public money, was passed in:

The Indian Tolls Act, 1851 was passed by the British Indian government to allow the levy of tolls on roads and bridges constructed or repaired at the expense of the government.

Purpose of the Act:

• To recover the cost of building and maintaining roads and bridges from those who used them.
• To provide funds for improving transport infrastructure in British India.

Context:

• In the mid-19th century, the East India Company was building roads, such as the Grand Trunk Road, to improve communication and trade.
• Lord Dalhousie, who was Governor-General from 1848 to 1856, gave great importance to public works, including roads, railways and the telegraph.
• The Public Works Department was set up in 1854.

Present position:

• The Indian Tolls Act, 1851 continued to be in force long after independence.
• Today, tolls on national highways are levied mainly under the National Highways Act, 1956 and the rules made under it, such as the National Highways Fee (Determination of Rates and Collection) Rules, 2008.
• Toll collection on national highways is done by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) or by private companies under public-private partnership agreements.

Electronic toll collection:

• FASTag, based on radio frequency identification (RFID) technology, was made mandatory for vehicles on national highways from February 2021.
• The government is also working on satellite-based toll collection systems.

Other laws of the same period:

• The Indian Railways were started in 1853, with the first passenger train from Bombay to Thane.
• The first telegraph line was set up between Calcutta and Diamond Harbour in 1851.
• The Post Office Act was passed in 1854.

Importance of roads:

Roads remain the most important mode of transport in India for both passengers and goods.

Why not the other options?

• ✗1835, 1872 and 1905 do not match the year of the Indian Tolls Act.