River rejuvenation project likely to get delayed in Pune

Pune Municipal Corporation has requested Centre its inability to bear the plan’s excess cost.

PUNE: The river rejuvenation project to be executed with the help of Japan International Co-operation Agency (JICA) is likely to get delayed with Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) requesting the Centre its inability to bear the plan’s excess cost.

View of Mula river near Baner cremation ground in Pune. The river rejuvenation project is planned to be executed with the help of Japan International Co-operation Agency. (HT FILE)

Saurabh Rao, Pune Municipal Commissioner, said, “The bidders quoted excess cost for executing the JICA project in the city. Hence, the civic administration has requested the central government to allow them to scrap the tendering process and carry out a fresh process.”

A civic official said that the Centre is yet to take any decision on the tenders. Sources from PMC said that if the central government accepts the PMC recommendation, the civic administration would need time to float a fresh tender. The election dates for Maharashtra assembly is likely to be announced after the Ganesh Festival. If the model code of conduct comes into effect, PMC would be unable to execute the retendering process.

Hence, officials are of the opinion that the project would get delay again.

The project cost is ₹1,000 crore and tenders for initial work of up to ₹410 crore have been floated. However, contractors who bid for these tenders quoted rates of at least 40 per cent above the estimated costs, raising the cost of the initial work —sewage treatment plants — to ₹700 crore.

As the whole project is funded by the central government and JICA, PMC is not in a position to take a call on inflated tenders. As the allocated fund for the project is ₹1,000 crore, the excess have to be borne by the civic body.