BMC admin submits Rs 1,790-crore road work proposals

This fiscal, BMC set aside Rs 1,600 crore for road work. Representation pic

The BMC, which had reinvited tenders for different road works to the tune of Rs 1,790, has once again received bids that are 15 to 20 per cent below the estimate. The civic body has decided to take extra deposits and retain 20 per cent of the tender amounts till the end of the defect liability period. The 41 proposals have been sent to the standing committee for approval.

There are around 2,000 km of road in the city and road work constitute a major portion of the BMC budget. This financial year, the civic body set aside Rs 1,600 crore for road work. the work proposals assume significance as the corporation is set for election early next year. "Every year, monsoon starts with complaints of potholes. Now the BMC has come up with an enormous amount of road works at the juncture of the election, but the BJP will ensure that the road works will be carried out appropriately," said Prabhakar Shinde, group leader of BJP.

The proposed works will be done over the next two years and includes construction and repairing of around 540 cement concrete roads including 64 roads in Bhandup, 41 roads in Malad, 37 in Dahisar, 33 in Goregaon and 28 roads in Kandivli. The works also include improvement of junctions, footpaths and repairing a few asphalt roads. The total project cost will be divided in three financial years.

The BMC had first invited tenders for the works in April but received bids that quoted around 30 per cent below the estimate, raising concerns about the quality of work. After facing wrath from the opposition, the civic body scrapped the bids and re-invited them in September. As per the proposals, the estimated value of the works is Rs 1,644 crore, which comes to Rs 1,790 after taxes and other charges.

"We introduced the 80:20 formula wherein 20 per cent of the amount will be released after inspecting the road condition after five years [the defect liability period] for a cement concrete road. There is even a condition to appoint a quality management agency to keep a watch on the quality of roads," said a BMC official.

New condition in tenders

The BMC has added a new condition in its tender for road works which states that the civic body will release 20 per cent of the total project cost for concrete from the sixth year, that is after the defect liability period ends.

For asphalt roads, for which the defect liability period is three years, 10 per cent of the total cost will be released after the second as well as the third year. The BMC believes this will ensure that contractors bid at par with the estimates. It will also appoint a quality management agency to maintain the quality of roads.