Mumbai: Rampant corruption in the Road Department of the BMC is deterring reputed infra companies from taking part in the civic body’s tenders for cement concreting of roads.
"The large companies have the technology and experience to provide high-quality cement concrete roads for the metropolis. But the cartelisation and the high level of corruption is preventing them from bidding for these contracts,” Ravi Raja, former leader of the opposition in the BMC, told The Free Press Journal on Wednesday.
The Issue
Despite the growing scale of its road contracts, the BMC has repeatedly failed to attract reputed companies to bid on these multi-crore projects. Instead, the same contractors – some of whom are blacklisted – continue to secure contracts through backdoor channels. This issue is attributed to a troubling nexus between civic officials and private contractors, which deters major companies from participating in the bidding process, according to former corporators. They alleged that the disinterest from reputable companies is largely due to convoluted procedures, excessive red tape, and rampant corruption.
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Since last year, the BMC has undertaken concretisation of all roads in Mumbai. However, only 30% of the roadworks in the eastern and western suburbs have been completed under the first phase. The BMC also scrapped a Rs 1,600 crore contract with Roadway Solutions India Infrastructure Ltd (RSIIL) for road concretisation in the island city due to delays. Currently, work for the second phase, which involves concretising 312 kilometres of roads, is under scrutiny. Concerns have been raised about the potential allotment of the contract to a company that was blacklisted in 2016 for substandard work.
BJP Mumbai President Ashish Shelar On The Issue
In a post on X, BJP Mumbai president Ashish Shelar said: “Shocking that BMC awarded Rs 1,566 crore road concretisation contract to repeat offender and blacklisted firm RPS infra projects.”
He demanded scrapping the contract and inviting new tenders. Raja claimed that for years, a cartel of the same companies has consistently secured road contracts.
“While some major firms had previously expressed interest in these projects, they have since withdrawn after observing the ongoing curtailment in road contracts,” he said.
He also blamed the BMC for fixing unrealistic price estimates for undertaking the work, which makes it unviable for big firms.
“Unless this nexus is broken, big companies such as Gammon India, Larsen & Toubro and Hindustan Construction Company will keep their distance from these civic projects,” he said.
Former BJP Corporator Vinod Mishra On The Issue
Vinod Mishra, a former BJP corporator, said the then-ruling party, Shiv Sena (UBT), in the BMC, was also part of this nexus.
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“During the BMC’s standing committee meetings, we opposed the reduction of the blacklisting period for contractors. Since the term of the 227 corporators ended in 2022, there has been a notable lack of oversight and monitoring of administrative work. Until the nexus between civic officials and contractors is addressed, major infrastructure firms are unlikely to engage in BMC projects,” he said.
Meanwhile, Sachin Padwal, a former corporator of Shiv Sena (UBT), attributed the lack of interest from major companies in road projects to convoluted procedures and excessive red tape.
“There are 43 underground utilities that need to be relocated during road concretisation, which is a time-consuming process. Additionally, securing the necessary traffic permissions for roadwork within the allotted time is a significant challenge,” Padwal explained.
Bhushan Gagrani, who was appointed as the municipal commissioner in March this year, was not available for comment.
