National Highway Projects: Low Price Bids Come Under NHAI Scanner

Expressing concern over abnormally low price bid for highway projects, the government has firmed up a mechanism to monitor such works.

According to the Road Transport Ministry, highway projects bid out at “abnormally low” price to private players will now be put under a separate list for critical monitoring by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI).

Officers concerned will have to visit sites every fortnight to see the actual progress and will also need to ensure that the contractors have deployed adequate resources.

The NHAI issued a circular to deal with “abnormally low bids” (ALBs). Private bidders quoting very low prices for government-funded highway projects has become a cause of concern and it was also recently flagged by a parliamentary standing committee.

The number of bidders for such projects has increased significantly since the government did away with compulsory deposit of additional bid security from contractors who quote low prices. Many of the projects have been bid out at 20-30 per cent less than the price offered by the government agencies.

Even as the government continues with the current norm under the Atmanirbhar Bharat scheme to give relief to domestic bidders, the focus is to ensure better monitoring of works so that there is no slippage.

No one who does not perform after bagging projects will be spared since they have bid after carrying out their assessments.

According to the NHAI circular, such ALBs will be identified separately in the "data lake" (central database of all projects) so that details uploaded there can be monitored by the project director, regional officer and officer concerned in the technical division. Monthly reports will be generated for monitoring and perusal.

It has been made mandatory for officers concerned to take steps to ensure the contractors deploy required resources and they review monthly drone videography of work. NHAI will deploy more engineers for day-to-day monitoring.

Quality inspections will be carried out once in three months for projects bid out below more than 20 per cent and for those tendered below 10 per cent to 20 per cent, such inspections will be carried out in every six months.

The policy says the project directors, regional officers and people from headquarters will need to carry out inspections work at site every fortnight, two and three months respectively.