BMC wants 16 RoBs fixed in 9 months; only 1 contractor responds

BMC will put forward a proposal for approval to repair 16 ROBs at the upcoming standing committee meeting on Wednesday.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) effort to avoid delays in repairing rail overbridges (RoB) by setting contractors a timeline of nine months to repair around 16 RoBs in the city, and levying penalties if the deadline is not adhered to, has received a poor response from contractors. The civic body’s stricter norms, which it adopted for the first time, has resulted in only one contractor responding to the tender notice.

Shah and Parekh Company is the only bidder that has expressed interest in carrying out the repair work ordered by BMC. (HT FILE)

The BMC will put forward a proposal for approval to repair 16 ROBs at the upcoming standing committee meeting on Wednesday. The repair work is expected to cost Rs. 14.4 crore. Shah and Parekh Company is the only bidder that has expressed interest in carrying out the repair work. The contract mentions that any delay in work will result in penalty as per the contract conditions.

The repair work includes ‘off-loading’ the bridges and putting on a fresh layer of asphalt. Off-loading is a process in which the excess layers of asphalt and concrete which have been laid on the bridge over the years during repair work, will be scrapped. A senior civic official from the bridges department said, “Over the years these bridges have been weighed down due to the repeated layer of asphalt and concrete put on the bridges. This repair work will help lighten the bridge.”

The decision to repair these bridges was taken after a study of the RoBs by IIT-Bombay. The ROBs listed for repairs are located at Mahalakshmi, Prabhadevi, Dadar, Chinchpokoli, Currey Road, Wadala, GTB Nagar, Matunga, Bellasis Road, Byculla, Diana RoB, French Bridge, Princess Street, Grant road, Kennedy Bridge and Sandhurst Road bridge.