Did Devendra Fadnavis force BMC to change road contract rule?

Devendra Fadnavis, leader of Opposition in Maharashtra Assembly

Did former CM Devendra Fadnavis's letter compel the Shiv Sena-ruled BMC to go back to the 80:20 payment formula for payment to road contractors? On September 11, Fadnavis had raised a red flag over contractors quoting rates nearly 30 per cent below the estimated cost for road tenders.

In his letter to BMC Commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal, the BJP leader mentioned that bidders for road tenders have quoted rates that are abnormally low and non-workable. "The bidders will blow up the measurement or put in far/excess/extra items to make up for the pricing," the letter mentioned.

A road in Cotton Green. In the 80:20 formula, 20% payment will be withheld from contractors for a certain period

Fadnavis's letter further stated that in the past, road scams happened because the BMC awarded contracts to contractors who quoted prices much lower than the estimated cost, because of which the work quality suffered. "During audit, it was observed that in 200 roads the entire layer was missing. It seems that BMC has not learnt [its] lessons," the letter stated.

In 2016, mid-day published a series of stories under the title ‘Scumbag Millionaires' regarding bad roads and exposed the owners of companies responsible.

With elections round the corner and citizens and political parties making bad roads a talking point, the BMC acted quickly and took the decision.

Potholes at Jarimari on Andheri Kurla Road last month

After Fadnavis sent his letter, road repair tenders worth several hundred crores were canceled.

Last week, the BMC re-introduced the 80:20 payment system where the larger chunk of money will be released to contractors during the course of the work and 20 per cent will be given on completion of the Defect Liability Period (ranging from 5 to 10 years).

Meanwhile, senior BJP leader Ashish Shelar claimed that legally, the 80:20 payment system is not tenable. "The BMC will have to look for stringent options to ensure that contractors deliver quality work and erring people are punished," said Shelar.

‘Not because of ex-CM'

Additional Municipal Commissioner P Velrasu, however, stated that the 80:20 system was not introduced following a letter from the former chief minister. The IAS officer further refuted the claim that the system is not according to rules and is legally untenable. "The civic body can decide the conditions in a tender. The civic body has followed the 80:20 system and even the 60:40 system in the past," Velrasu said.

Mayor Kishori Pednekar and Yeshwant Jadhav, the standing committee chairman from Shiv Sena, did not respond to calls and messages.