In a significant setback to Chief Minister Ekanth Shinde’s pledge to eliminate Mumbai’s potholes within two years, the BMC has opted to cancel the contract for constructing cement concrete roads within the island city. Roadway Solutions India Infra Ltd (RSIL) received a termination notice from the BMC due to their failure to commence work on CC roads, almost eight months post receiving work orders. RSIL has been given a 15-day deadline to respond to the notice, justifying why their contract should not be terminated. RSIL is among the five companies awarded the Rs 6,080 crore, 400km CC road contracts spanning the city.
In April of this year, BMC levied a Rs 16 crore penalty on three out of the five firms for their inability to commence work, even three months following the receipt of work orders, and for causing project delays.
CC road works: Company could lose deposit, be barred for 2 yrs
“The BMC is taking stringent action against RSIL, the contractor responsible for cement concrete road projects within the island city. Previously, RSIL faced a nearly Rs 10 crore penalty for their failure to initiate work. In April, the BMC had also issued a show-cause notice to RSIL.
The BMC’s notice was prompted by complaints from former BJP corporator Makarand Narwekar, who urged the BMC to levy a substantial penalty and initiate blacklisting proceedings. A senior civic official stated, ‘Following our notices and penalties, other companies began their work. However, there was no progress in the city division, leading us to issue a termination notice. We’ve requested a response from the company within 15 days, and if work doesn’t commence, due process will result in contract termination. Failing to start work could lead to the forfeiture of the company’s security deposit and a potential two-year ban from participating in BMC tenders.’
Narwekar has strongly advocated for the immediate termination of the company’s contract and its permanent blacklisting. He emphasized that the BMC should not only permanently blacklist the company but also notify the state government and other agencies such as MMRDA, MSRDC, and PWD to blacklist the company for its failure to fulfill its obligations in Mumbai. Narwekar insisted, ‘The BMC should urgently appoint a new contractor and recover the costs of damages from the previous company.’ For the past six months, we have been demanding the removal of this company as it has proven incapable of executing any work.
“Citizens have endured significant inconvenience as the roads were barricaded and excavated, with no progress on the promised work,” he stated. Additional municipal commissioner (projects) P Velrasu confirmed to TOI that the BMC had decided to issue a show-cause termination notice to RSIL. The company did not respond to TOI’s query. SP MLA Rais Shaikh remarked, “It has been over a year since the CM directed the BMC to concrete all Mumbai roads within two years, yet the city has not witnessed any improvement in ride quality.” Former Congress corporator and the BMC’s former opposition leader, Ravi Raja, criticized the BMC for its oversight in contractor selection.