Rs 5,800 crore Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation plan for concrete roads

MUMBAI: Following a diktat from chief minister Eknath Shinde last month that all roads should be cement concretised by 2024 to eradicate the pothole problem, the BMC on Tuesday invited bids from five companies for Rs 5,800 crore works for 400km of roads- more than twice the Rs 2,000 crore it spends on an average annually on repairs.
BMC officials said floating of the tenders was a step towards making the city pothole-free.
In a first, the civic body has restricted joint ventures for road works and expects a response from companies with experience in road construction at the state and national level. Another reason for expecting a response only from larger companies of repute is because five tenders have been invited for 400km of road construction instead of multiple smaller tenders in the past.
All these road works are to be completed within 24 months of a work order. After completion of the works, the company's liability period will be for 10 years and 20% of the road works payment will be retained so that these are properly maintained and repaired during the fault-liability period.
Officials said barricades around road repair works will have QR codes. By scanning these, one can get detailed information on road repair while actual works are underway.
Roads will also be designed keeping in mind needs of the differently abled.
The BMC has also planned a separate underground passage for utility service channels, rainwater catchment pits, and appointment of an organisation for quality control and CCTV cameras. The tender condition itself will make it mandatory to construct separate underground passageways for utility service channels so that there is no need for frequent trenching for utility service channel works. Drainage pits to allow for absorption of rainwater into the soil will be constructed at regular intervals on the roads too.