Nitin Gadkari Criticises Highway Tender System: Minister Seeks Contractor and DPR Consultant Ratings

As the minister kept referring to NHAI tenders again and again, it seems likely that the minister was hinting at the collusive practice between NHAI and contractors. However, the minister didn't mention who will formulate the policies. It is his government, and he himself is the minister.

Speaking on the occasion of the Tunnel and Bridge Conference arranged by FICCI on Wednesday, Union Minister for Road Transport Nitin Gadkari started his address by criticizing the ministry officers.

The Union Minister said that it is unfortunate that the policymakers are not here. They should be called, because those working in the government think they know everything.

Citing a project in Maharashtra, he said that the contractor won the tender at a rate significantly lower than the stipulated tender price and then subcontracted it to the contractor at a higher price. He called for action against that contractor, but the minister described it as a major problem that subcontracts are being awarded at multiple layers.

He said he was going to issue an order to investigate, based on GST records, how many subcontracts a contractor awarded in a tender, as there are rules for this as well. Contractors subcontract, and if the quality is poor, they are discredited.

Once again, highlighting the issue of poor DPRs as a major problem, Nitin Gadkari said that DPRs are created from home using Google. This is causing road accidents and causing losses to the country.

Gadkari said that he wanted a rule for DPRs that only those DPR consultants with a 51 percent stake in international companies should be given the work, but his people here have made it flexible. They are also under scrutiny and will not be spared.

Gadkari claimed that he was going to create a system to audit the performance of contractors and DPR consultants. Their ratings will determine whether they will be eligible for future tenders.