Mumbai: The BMC has received responses from 15 bidders for concretisation of roads worth Rs. 6,200 crore in the city and suburbs. However, the same contractors have submitted bids for all the works in seven zones including a contractor who have been blacklisted in 2015. Meanwhile, the BMC has completed only 25% of concretisation of 397 km of road work undertaken last year.
The BMC floated a tender for concretisation of 400 km of roads in February. The civic body received three bids in the city and the eastern suburbs, while nine in the western suburbs. It has been observed that the same contractors have bid for all the work. RPS Infraprojects was blacklisted in 2015, and has also submitted their bids for work in the western and eastern suburbs. The officials clarified that since the inquiry, penalty and blacklisting periods of this contractor were over, they could bid again. The BMC will now scrutinise the bids and allot contracts to the lowest bidders.
The city has a road network of 2,050 km, out of which around 1000 km of road has been concretised. Following directives of the chief minister Eknath Shinde, the BMC has undertaken concretisation of all the roads to make the city's potholes free. Accordingly, last year, the civic body floated tenders for Rs 6,080 crore concretisation of 397km of roads across the city and contracts were awarded to five firms. However, BMC cancelled the contract of about Rs 1,600 crore awarded to Roadway Solutions India Infrastructure Ltd (RSIIL) for concretising 97km of roads in the island city over delay. The BMC has also faced criticism for slow progress of road concretisation work in the city.
Ravi Raja, former opposition leader of BMC said, "How can BMC undertake new work when only 20-25% work from last year's contract has been completed. I got to know that there is cartelisation in new tender. Tenders are alloted just to benefit the contractors. I will ask the newly appointed municipal commissioner Bhushan Gagrani to look into the matter and ensure speedy concretisation of roads." Currently nearly 25% of concretisation has been completed. We are trying to complete about 50% of the work by May-end. The road department will not give any permission to carry out the roads after April," said a senior civic official.
