Bihar government to introduce new e-tendering process in April: Sushil Kumar Modi

PATNA: Deputy CM Sushil Kumar Modi on Saturday said the government would introduce new e-tendering module from April this year for greater transparency in the processing of tenders submitted by contractors and executing agencies for their selection and allotment of work.
Modi was addressing the pre-budget consultative meeting involving contractors and representatives of agencies. Building construction department minister Ashok Choudhary, public health and engineering department minister Vinod Narayan Jha and water resources department minister Sanjay Kumar Jha were also present on the occasion.
Modi dwelt on various other aspects related to the tendering process on which the government has been working for introduction in the future. Even as contractors might be seeking work allotment in various works departments, including the road construction department, their registration with the government would be done at one place.
He added that prior to the submission of tender and preparation of the estimate of work sought for, they would be provided with a checklist which would mention the laws and other aspects with which they would have to comply during the preparation of the estimate or the execution of work.
Modi said documents submitted during the filing of tenders would be put on display on the official portal for seven days as was being done in the road construction department. This would be done to give information to the tenderers about errors in the tender papers they had submitted, or the reasons for the rejection of the tenders filed by them for the work allotment.
Earlier, the participant contractors and representatives of the work executing agencies raised queries regarding Goods and Services Tax (GST) and mining activities. Modi said a workshop would be held in the near future to resolve their grievances and clear their confusions.
Modi talked about the quantum of work that had been undertaken in the current fiscal, saying that Bihar had become the biggest consumer of cement in the country. During the current fiscal, works worth Rs 31,600 crore had been taken up for execution, while raw materials worth Rs 22,146 crore had been brought into the state for use in the construction work.
The raw materials brought for use in the construction work included iron and steel worth Rs 10,600 crore, cement worth Rs 4,279 crore, electrical goods in the range of Rs 6,572 crore and tiles and marbles to the tune of Rs 675 crore.
Besides, in the 2019-20 financial year, works worth Rs 7,023 crore had been taken up for execution in the road construction department, followed by Rs 4,423 crore in the building construction department and Rs 2,662 crore in the water resources department.