JUDGMENT G.C. Mathur, J. - The petitioners have challenged the realisation of a sum of Rs. 2.50 on account of the transit pass fee from each vehicle on its entry into the limits of the Municipal Board of Jahangirabad, district Bulandshahr, in addition to the realisation of 50 paisa as toll tax. 2. The twenty-seven petitioners ply stage carriages on the Bulandshahr Jahangirabad Daulatpur Aharpur route and pass through the limits of the Municipal Board of Jahangirabad. Admittedly their stage carriages stop within the limits of the Municipal Board to set down passengers and to take up fresh passengers. The Municipal Board, admittedly, is entitled to charge a toll tax of 50 paisa on each stage carriage when it enters the limits of the Municipal Board. To the payment of this toll tax the petitioners have no objection. In 1955, the State Government framed the "transit pass rules for municipalities levying toll or octroi or both." These rules provided that "every vehicle or other conveyance or animal, laden solely with goods meant for immediate export or laden coolies or animals, merely passing in transit through the municipality to an outside destination, shall be permitted to pass through it, under cover of a transit pass in the prescribed forms, subject to the payment of a security equal to the amount of toll or octroi, as the case may be, leviable thereon and transit fee as detailed in the Schedule." The transit pass fee for stage carriages was fixed at Re. 1/- by Item 8 of the Schedule. These rules were replaced in 1967 by "The Transit Rules for Municipalities levying Toll, Octroi or Terminal Tax or any two or all the three of these taxes". Under these rules also the transit pass fee for a loaded bus or passenger lorry was fixed at Re. 1/-. These rules were amended by a notification dated June 15, 1968, published in the U.P. Gazette dated June 22, 1968. One of the amendments made was that the transit pass fee for loaded bus or passenger lorry was raised to Rs. 2.50. Admittedly, the Municipal Board, Jahangirabad, is recovering a sum of Rs. 2.50 as transit pass fee plus it sum of 50 paisa as toll tax from each loaded bus or passenger lorry which enters the limits of the municipality. 2.50. Admittedly, the Municipal Board, Jahangirabad, is recovering a sum of Rs. 2.50 as transit pass fee plus it sum of 50 paisa as toll tax from each loaded bus or passenger lorry which enters the limits of the municipality. The recovery of the transit pass fee has been challenged on three grounds:- (i) That the rules make an additional imposition on stage carriages entering the limits of the municipality and are ultra vires Section 296 of the U.P. Municipalities Act under which they have been made ; (ii) that, under the rules, in view of the fourth proviso to rule 4. the Municipal Board can recover the transit pass fee equal to the toll tax leviable, that is to say, 50 paisa only; and (iii) that the transit pass fee is not recoverable from stage carriages and, even if it is recoverable from them, it is only recoverable from such stage carriages as are passing in trasit through the municipality and are not stopping there to set down or pick up passengers. 3. By virtue of rule 2, the transit pass rules apply to municipalities which levy toll tax, or octroi duty or terminal tax or any two or all the three of these taxes. The main provisions regarding the transit pass and the transit pass fee are contained in rule 4. The relevant provisions of this rule are as follows:- "4. Every vehicle, or other conveyance, or animal or coolie laden exclusively with goods meant for immediate export and merely passing in transit through the municipality to an outside destination, shall be permitted to pass through it, under cover of a transit pass to be issued in form no. 1, subject to the payment of the transit fee as detailed in the `Schedule' and in accordance with the procedure prescribed hereafter. 1, subject to the payment of the transit fee as detailed in the `Schedule' and in accordance with the procedure prescribed hereafter. These rules shall also apply to such goods as are carried on vehicles or other conveyances, animals or coolies from outside the municipality to the Railway Station or railway sidings situate within municipal limits and are unloaded and detained there for a period of three days and thereafter exported to other places outside the limits of the Municipality through railway or are carried on by the railway to the Railway Station or railway sidings situate within municipal limits and are unloaded and detained there for a period of three days and thereafter as soon as delivery is taken from railway exported therefrom by means of vehicles or other conveyances, animals or coolies to places outside the municipal limits. This period of three days may be extended by the president of the Board, if necessary. No such transit facilities shall be extended to the mixed consignments, i.e. those partly intended for the city and partly for going out of the city : Provided.................................... Provided.................................... Provided further that in cases where no toll, octroi or terminal tax is leviable on any goods or loaded vehicles, laden animals or coolies, the Board shall not charge any transit fee for such goods or loaded vehicles or laden animals or coolies. Provided further that in cases where the octroi or toll or terminal tax leviable on any goods or loaded vehicles is less than the transit fee, the Board shall charge only a transit fee equal to such octroi or toll or terminal tax." 4. These rules were obviously meant to facilitate the passing through the municipal limits of vehicles etc. and goods which were only in transit. Before these rules were framed, the tax or duty had to be paid even by vehicles and goods which were only passing through the municipal limits at the entry barrier and these were then refunded at the exit barrier. This procedure naturally involved it considerable waste of time and a lot of inconvenience. It was to get over the ...... same procedure of assessment of the vehicles etc. and the goods to the tax, the deposit of the tax at the entry barrier and the refund of the amount deposited at the exit barrier that these rules were framed. This procedure naturally involved it considerable waste of time and a lot of inconvenience. It was to get over the ...... same procedure of assessment of the vehicles etc. and the goods to the tax, the deposit of the tax at the entry barrier and the refund of the amount deposited at the exit barrier that these rules were framed. These rules obviated the necessity of any assessment of tax or payment there of at the entry barrier. If the vehicles etc. or goods were merely passing through the municipal limits then a transit pass was given on payment of the transit pass fee and the vehicles etc., or goods were allowed to pass through the municipal limits. From the very nature of a transit pass, such a pass is not necessary for vehicles etc. on goods which are not merely passing through the limits of the Municipal Board. The levying of a transit pass fee is not the imposition of any additional tax; it is merely a fee charged for facilitating the transit of the vehicles etc. or goods through the Municipal Board without the vehicles etc. or goods being assessed to the tax and without the realisation of the taxes. The contention of the petitioners that the transit pass fee is an additional imposition is not correct. Therefore, it cannot legitimately be urged that the rules are beyond the rule-making power under Section 296 of the U.P. Municipalities Act. 5. The third ground raised, namely, whether any transit pass fee is recoverable from the stage carriages of the petitioners, may now be considered. The opening words of rule 4 stage that every vehicle etc., laden exclusively with goods meant for immediate export and MERELY passing in transit through the municipality to AN OUT side destination, shall be permitted to pass through it under cover of a transit pass. The words italicised make it clear that a transit pass is necessary only in respect of vehicles etc. which carry goods which are only in transit through the municipality. Obviously, such vehicle do not include the stage carriages plied by the petitioners which merely carry passengers. Even if they carry the goods of the passengers, it cannot be said that the vehicles are laden exclusively with goods meant for immediate export. It is true that, in the schedule to the rules, loaded vehicle or passenger lorry is specifically mentioned. Obviously, such vehicle do not include the stage carriages plied by the petitioners which merely carry passengers. Even if they carry the goods of the passengers, it cannot be said that the vehicles are laden exclusively with goods meant for immediate export. It is true that, in the schedule to the rules, loaded vehicle or passenger lorry is specifically mentioned. The schedule is only meant to lay down the quantum of the transit pass fee. The vehicles etc., to which the transit pass rules apply, can only be the vehicles covered by the opening part of rule 4. If stage carriages are not included within the opening part of rule 4, then their mention in the schedule will not make rule 4 applicable to them. It thus appears that stage carriages are outside the ambit of rule 4. Even if it be held that sage carriages are covered by rule 4, even then the petitioner's stage carriages, since, admittedly, they stop within the limits of the Municipal Board to set down and to pick up passengers, cannot be said to be merely passing in transit through the Municipality. Further, even the goods of the passengers, which the stage carriages carry cannot be said to be "exclusively goods meant for immediate export" as some of the passengers get down within the municipal limits and bring down their luggage also. The last sentence of rule 4 before the provisos provides that no such transit facilities shall be extended to the mixed consignments, e.g. those partly intended for the city and partly for going out of the city. Since even the goods of the passengers, which the stage carriages carry, can, at the most, be said to be partly intended for the city in respect of passengers getting down there and partly intended for going out of the city in respect of passengers merely passing in transit through the municipality, transit facilities are not available to such stage carriages. Since the stage carriages of the petitioners are not entitled to transit facilities, they are not required to obtain transit passes or to pay transit pass fees. The recovery of the transit pass fee of Rs. 2.50 from the petitioners for each trip made by their stage carriages is, therefore, not authorised by the rules. 6. Since the stage carriages of the petitioners are not entitled to transit facilities, they are not required to obtain transit passes or to pay transit pass fees. The recovery of the transit pass fee of Rs. 2.50 from the petitioners for each trip made by their stage carriages is, therefore, not authorised by the rules. 6. In the view that I have taken above, it is not necessary to consider the second ground raised by the petitioners. 7. The writ petition is accordingly allowed and the Municipal Board, Jahangirabad, is restrained from realising transit pass fees from the petitioner's stage carriages which do not merely pass in transit through the municipality but also stop there to put down and pick up passengers. There will be no order as to costs.