HYDERABAD: Union minister G. Kishan Reddy on Sunday demanded that the BRS government, led by Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao, face a CBI investigation into alleged irregularities in awarding the Outer Ring Road (ORR) to IRB Infrastructure and Development Limited at a lower tender of '7, 380 crore for 30 years.
Kishan Reddy told the media at the state BJP party office in Nampally that the BRS government appeared to have protested the privatisation of the Visakhapatnam steel plant, but that Chief Minister K. Chandrashekhr Rao awarded the ORR toll collection contract to a private company, demonstrating his apparent double standards. “Why did the Chief Minister award the ORR toll collection contract to private company IRB Infrastructure and Development Limited,” Kishan Reddy questioned.
He stated that the state government owes an explanation to the people because awarding toll collecting, operation, and maintenance of the ORR to a private company for 30 years will result in a significant loss of revenue to the state. Further, Kishan Reddy said that the state government would earn Rs 30,000 crore revenues by collecting toll fees on the ORR as vehicle movement increased and that awarding the ORR toll fee process to a private entity for 30 years was an illegal act.
“The state government must face a CBI investigation into the irregularities and must be answerable to the people. The ORR serves as a vital link for motorists travelling to Mumbai, Bengaluru, Vijayawada, Karimnagar, and Warangal. The government deliberately awarded ORR maintenance to a private firm at the lowest price and without announcing basic toll tax price details," the Union minister remarked. Further, Kishan Reddy stated that the ORR falls under the HMDA master plan, which was designed for 2020 to 2031. “If the government awarded the ORR to a private entity for 30 years, the private firm would collect taxes on the ORR for 21 years more than the existing master plan, which is a blatant violation of government policy,” he remarked.
The Maharashtra-Pune Highway is also being maintained by IRB for 15 years, he said, asking why then the state government awarded ORR to the private entity for 30 years. “The state government assigned a task to Crisil to undertake a study on ORR. Crisil conducted the study and submitted a comprehensive report on ORR, toll tax, revenue generation, among others. Why did the state government hide the report while awarding the ORR contract to the private firm,” he asked.
Before leaking the news to a section of the media about awarding ORR to a private firm, the state government modified the lease rate and added '100 crore to the final price, bringing the total to '7,380 crore. Why did the government wait 16 days after finalising the bidding process,” he questioned.
