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Bhopal smart city corporators give thumbs down to e-tendering
Cutting across party lines, Bhopal Municipal Corporation (BMC) corporators are opposing e-tendering, a move that could save the civic body crores and go a long way in making tender process transparent. On Thursday, BJP-led BMC corporators, who pride themselves on the smart city tag, met BMC commissioner Chhavi Bhardwaj challenging the order which makes mandatory e-tendering of all projects above Rs 1 lakh.
The BMC commissioner’s directive has plugged loopholes in tendering system itself. Any tender will have to be sanctioned by city engineer and zone officer wherein breaking a project into various parts to avoid e-tendering would not be possible. Each corporator gets a fund of Rs 18 lakh per year.
“E-tendering ensures competitive rate as compared to manual schedule of rate (SoR) format. The system is efficient and transparent and will benefit civic body,” said Bhardwaj.
Sources said the new format for tendering was approved by BJP mayor Alok Sharma. However, BJP corporator Keval Mishra said, “The mayor has not approved the move. Some 35 corporators have opposed change in tendering norms. It is an arbitrary decision.”
Mishra claimed SoR method works best for development. “In many cases through e-tendering the quote is so low that contractor does not complete his task. It hinders development,” Mishra and delegation to BMC officials. In her reply, Bhardwaj asked BMC officials to blacklist contractors that back off from projects.
Mishra claimed that some 35% of projects through e-tendering have not been completed to date, an allegation refuted by BMC officials. Kevin Connauton Jersey
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