Mumbai civic body panel amends proposal to appoint consultant for Malad sewage treatment plant
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) standing committee on Wednesday appointed a project consultant for the proposed sewage treatment (STP) plant at Malad. Amending the administration’s proposal to appoint the lowest bidder Tata Consulting Engineers as the project consultant for the proposed STP, the committee directed the BMC to award the contract to the second-lowest bidder NJS Engineers India Pvt Ltd, with directives to negotiate with this firm to match the price quoted by the lowest bidder. The cost of the project is ₹61 crore.
This is part of BMC’s plan to upgrade its STPs at Worli, Bandra, Versova, Malad, Bhandup and Ghatkopar, and construct a new STP at Dharavi. Treated water from these upgraded facilities will be used for non-potable purposes such as gardening, for car garages, fire-fighting, among others.
While the six STPs presently treat water at the primary level, they will be upgraded to treat water at the tertiary level, making it fit for reuse.
The amendment was proposed by the leader of the house Vishakha Raut. Raut said, “According to rules, BMC does not give one contractual firm more than three contracts. Tata Consultancy already has six existing BMC contracts. This delays the timeline of all projects and burdens the firm. We moved an amendment to award the contract to the second-lowest bidder, but the administration will have to negotiate with them to match the price quoted by the lowest bidder.”
Rais Shaikh, leader of the Samajwadi Party in BMC said, “Now the administration can either accept this, negotiate with the bidder to lower the cost and match the lowest bid, or refer the proposal to the state government.”
The consultants will help BMC in the project from the start to finish, will oversee the day to day’s work, and ensure the project is completed while resolving technical issues that may arise during the project completion. BMC is spending approximately ₹350 crores for appointing consultants for all seven STPs in the city.