BMC gives road maintenance work to contractors amidst dispute

19 May 2023 CW Team

The BMC has planned to resurface damaged sections of roads in the city prior to the rainy season. However, the contractors responsible for the concrete project will have to cover the expenses. The resurfacing will include roads that were supposed to be repaired as part of the road concreting project, which costs nearly Rs 60 billion. Nevertheless, the contractors who won the bids have refused to maintain roads that haven't been assigned for repairs yet.

BMC officials have stated that the contract terms required the contractors to maintain all roads for which work orders have been issued. However, to ensure that drivers don't face any inconvenience due to the dispute between the contractors and the BMC, the council has decided to resurface those roads at the expense of the contractors.

P Velrasu, the additional municipal commissioner, said, "We have already issued work orders for resurfacing non-project roads in poor condition. If necessary, we will also carry out repairs on project roads if the contractors refuse to maintain them. In such cases, the contractor responsible for maintenance according to the tender conditions will be billed for the costs incurred."

The opposition has accused the contractors of receiving preferential treatment, as in the past, the BMC used to compel the same contractors to maintain the roads after work orders were issued.

Former opposition leader of the BMC, Ravi Raja, stated, "The contractors are obligated to read the tender terms and understand that they are supposed to maintain these roads. In the past, the BMC has never allowed contractors to have such freedom."

Asif Zakaria, former Bandra councilor, mentioned that since only 10 per cent of the concrete work has begun, the BMC will have to maintain most of the roads for which work orders have been issued.

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