Contractors will bear the cost of PPP stretches
BHOPAL : Around 20,000 kilometres of roads in the state have been damaged in the recent heavy downpour in the state. PWD and MPRDC may have to spend around Rs 600 crores on the repairs and reconstruction of roads but the contractors will have to ultimately bear the loss.
The engineer-in-chief of PWD, Akhilesh Agarwal informed that in the state 4771 kilometres of roads are national highways, 10,297 km state highways, 19,429 km of major district roads and 26,482 are village roads.
There are around 60,000 kilometre long roads in State. These roads are maintained by the PWD, MP Road Development Corporation and PM Gram Sadak Yojana. The PWD is collecting real time data of the damaged roads and the culverts at 419 places in the state. It is reported that in various places roads have been damaged including approach roads and culverts.
Mainly roads of Satna, Sagar, Chattarpur, Panna, Tikamgarh and Damoh districts have been damaged. PWD additional director finance, R.N. Mishra informed that around Rs 550 crores will be needed to repair the roads, which are maintained by the Public Works Department. Chief Engineer of MPRDC, Narendra Kumar added that the maximum number of roads are in the public private partnership (PPP model) and the contractors are responsible for maintain the roads including the losses due to recent rains damages has to bear by the contractors.
In previous year, the department have received Rs 1 crore as a flood losses amount, whereas in the current year it may increase to Rs 2.5 crore. Last year the department had spent Rs 60 crore in maintaining roads, which are directly maintained by the department. PWD and MPRDC officials informed that, in a new format the contractors are now responsible for the maintenances of the roads, some roads are under construction and the losses has to bear by the contractors, similarly the roads which are constructed and have damaged in the rains will be repaired by the contractors.
It is assumed that the contractors may spend Rs 2,000 crores to repair and also to reconstruct the contracted roads. Whereas the officials also claimed that it is too early to know the losses occurred due to rains, but in primary observations heavy losses may occurred. The losses report will be prepared in the last week of September and the repair and maintenance work will start from October month.
