The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) recently terminated the contract of Roadway Solutions India Infra Ltd (RSIIL), a company responsible for concretizing 212 roads in Mumbai's island city. The decision came on Wednesday following unsatisfactory performance, marking a pivotal moment in the city's infrastructure development. The BMC is now in the process of reissuing tenders for the 212 roads, aiming to ensure that the project's objectives are met.
Contract Termination and Details
The fate of RSIIL was sealed when civic chief and administrator Iqbal Singh Chahal decided to cancel the company's contract. This move comes after the BMC had closely monitored RSIIL's performance and found it lacking in several key areas. The termination was formally reported by the BMC's roads department to Chahal, who confirmed the decision. RSIIL had secured the road concretization contract at an estimated cost of ₹1,200 crore in January of this year. The company was one of the five firms awarded contracts totaling ₹6,080 crore for the concretization of 400 kilometers of roads across Mumbai. The stipulated deadline for all contractors was set at 24 months, excluding the monsoon season.
Heavy Penalty - Past and Present
As a consequence of its poor performance, RSIIL now faces a substantial penalty of over ₹50 crore imposed by the BMC. This penalty is the result of various violations of tender conditions, including failing to commence work on time, delaying the project, delivering subpar work quality, inadequate barricading, insufficient provision of machinery, and a lack of due diligence. This isn't the first time the BMC has taken action against contractors for project delays. In April of this year, the BMC had imposed a penalty of ₹16 crore and issued show-cause notices to three out of the five firms for their failure to initiate work even three months after receiving work orders, along with slow progress.
Scrutiny of Other Contractors
The termination of RSIIL's contract has raised concerns about the performance of the other four companies that were awarded road concretization contracts. BMC officials have stated that they are waiting for a report on the other four contractors. The performance of each contractor will be assessed, and a comprehensive report will be compiled. To ensure the continuity of the road concretization project, the BMC has finalized a parallel road tender with the same initial tender conditions for the 212 roads within the island city. This new tender is currently awaiting approval and will play a crucial role in keeping the project on track.
Political Implications
The controversy surrounding the termination of RSIIL's contract began with whistleblower allegations from former BJP corporator Makarand Narwekar. However, the issue took a political turn when Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray complained last week that the BMC had taken no action despite the termination notice to RSIIL being issued a week prior, and the final hearing on the contractor's termination occurring the previous Friday.
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