Mumbai: Breaking the age-old ritual of delayed beginning of the annual pre-monsoon desilting work, the Mira Bhayandar Municipal Corporation (MBMC) has decided to prepone the exercise this year.
The desilting operations will commence from the first week of April instead of May 10 to ensure that the work is completed before June 10. The public health department has requested allocations amounting ₹4 crores for the project. Last year the expenses stood at ₹3.5 crore.
Tenders floated
Tenders have been invited from experienced agencies for manual and mechanical excavation with JCB’s, Boat-Poclain’s and Hydraulic Earth Moving Machines for the desilting work across the six zonal divisions demarcated in the twin-city.
Contractors will be roped in for the provision of suction pumps to de-water chronic flooding spots.It has been alleged that ample scope has been provided for the contractors to manipulate loopholes in the clock-based pricing structure, exploitation of workers by denying minimum wages and safety gears to continue with their routine money-minting exercise.
Real time video shooting of on-duty labourers
Claimed to have put in place adequate steps to keep a check on the work to prevent any type of manipulations in the hiring process, MBMC chief- Dhilip Dhole said, “While real time video shooting of on-duty labour and in-action machines have been made as mandatory components to be submitted with the bills along with manual logbook records, dedicated teams have been deputed for supervision at the ward level. This apart from before and after photos of the desilting process will be a must.”
There are around 155 major and minor nullahs in the twin-city which measure up to more than 240 km. For weeding out dead mangrove shrubs in creeks which create obstacles, the MBMC will adopt a manual mechanism following an approval from the forest ranger attached to the mangrove cell.
