Now, contractors give it back to BMC : DNA

Conditions like dynamic security deposit, joint venture clause and internal nexus cited as reason for shoddy work

Why do the same contractors bag civic contracts despite a track record of shoddy work? Why do new players and big infrastructure firms stay away from BMC contracts? How do contractors manage to cheat the BMC time and again and get away with it? Answers to all these questions have been given, not by any think tank or consultant, but by contractors themselves.

A section of disgruntled contractors has written to municipal commissioner Ajoy Mehta, listing close to two dozen reasons why the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is struggling with giving work to top firms and ending up getting shoddy and substandard work. The group of contractors has demanded that the BMC set up a new tendering department and guidelines, so that there is no discrepancy between tenders floated by different departments within BMC.

The other suggestion given by the contractors is that the BMC get its own estimates right. “There have been several occasions where contractors have bid way above or below estimates. This is because the estimates are wrong. The BMC has created such tender conditions that no new player can participate. Forget big firms, even smaller players are being kept out,” said one of the contractors, who did not wish to be named.

Several conditions — having a dynamic security deposit for contracts, qualification criteria, exorbitant bank guarantee clauses, compulsion of having cement plants within the city, and bizarre joint venture clauses — have been listed in the memorandum submitted to Mehta. The memorandum has been signed by around 12 contractors.

In 2012, then municipal commissioner Sitaram Kunte had tried to attract bigger companies to execute road works by making changes in the tender conditions. The BMC had even clubbed several road contracts. The logic was that if big companies stepped in, the quality of roads will automatically improve. However, the plan failed and the same old contractors bagged the works. RPS Infraprojects, KR Construction, Jay Kumar, Relcon Infraprojects, RK Madhani & Co. and Mahavir Infrastructure among others bag BMC contracts every year.

“The BMC is being looted by the cartel of contractors. It must permanently blacklist them for shoddy work. There should be fair competition, but there is a big nexus. The roads and stormwater drains departments are the worst-affected by this nexus,” said Congress legislator Aslam Shaikh. Shaikh had recently exposed a cartel of road contractors, who had first bid for contracts but then stepped away to ensure the highest bidder got work instead of the lowest.

According to contractors, the conditions set by the BMC are not practical. These include the contractor having his own asphalt plant within city limits, the asphalt plant having at least eight boilers, the contractor having his own paving machine, the defect liability period, joint ventures being allowed only in certain contracts above Rs150 crore, and allowing sub-contracting of work.

“Following the complaints, Mehta had asked the roads department to review tender conditions. Clauses like having ready mix cement plants in the city have already been done away with,” said a senior civic official.