Proposal for Vishwamitri desilting turned down

Vadodara: After a series of controversies regarding two tenders for flood mitigation works, the Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) standing committee, which met on Friday, turned down proposals for the desilting of the Vishwamitri River and stormwater drains in the city.
It asked the administration to retender these in line with the procedures adopted by the irrigation department.
The standing committee met after the general board gave its nod to the flood mitigation plan prepared by the committee appointed by the state govt.
The proposals ran into controversy over the last couple of days after it came to light that the VMC was hiring excavators and other equipment for monsoon works at rates much lower than those in the tender. The irrigation department's tender sparked another debate when the irrigation department advertised its tender for work on the river outside city limits.
The irrigation department brought out the tenders for rates based on the cubic metre of material excavated from the river. It also divided the entire work into smaller portions to rope in multiple agencies. VMC, on the other hand, brought out the tenders to pay for the machinery on an hourly basis for the excavation work. The entire stretch of river within the city limits was handed over to one contractor, and all stormwater drains were handed over to another contractor. It was believed that the irrigation department's work would work out to be cheaper.
Sources said that in the wake of the controversies and instructions from the state govt, the top brass of the civic body decided to retender the works. It will now be done in line with the process adopted by the irrigation department.