KOCHI: No relief from hardships due to bad roads is what city residents can expect as regular road maintenance works have been put on hold due to the delay in disbursing payments to contractors and introduction of new systems like e-tendering.
Some of the major works like resurfacing of the dilapidated Vyttila Pettah Road have been delayed due to poor response to the tenders floated by the Public Works Department. Though PWD has tendered the work twice, there has been no response from contractors.
“Though tenders were invited to lay concrete tiles in the regular problem areas at Vyttila and Pettah, nobody responded.
Even after retendering, there were no takers for the work. Hence, we’ve decided to award the work through quotation at a higher rate,” said Jotty P Thomas, PWD executive engineer.
According to the All Kerala Government Contractors’ Association, payment of bills worth Rs 2500 cr is pending. If the PWD continues to be indifferent to the issue of settling outstanding bills, even the regular maintenance works of roads and buildings would be brought to a standstill and the entire development activities would be adversely affected, it has been generally observed.
For the last several months, response to tenders floated by agencies like Corporation and PWD has been poor due to e-tendering in which tough procedures are involved.
A contractor of the corporation said. “It is difficult to take new contracts, especially for big works, due to financial constraints. The Corporation owes nearly Rs 30 cr to contractors. Bills presented during the last two years, from December 2012 have not been settled.”
Meanwhile, the Corporation works committee is in the process of finalising tenders for road works.
