MUMBAI, 14 JUNE, 2022 (GPN): For the third time in a row, the BMC has received bids 35-40 per cent below the estimates for a Rs 40 crore tender invited for yearly maintenance of around 400 parks and gardens. The low bidding hasn’t gone down well with the corporators, who doubt that the contractors will be able to do quality work in the given estimates. Considering the concerns, the civic body has sent the bids to the accounts department to check if satisfactory work can be undertaken with the proposed bids, said the civic official.

Last year, the BMC had scrapped tenders for the maintenance of parks and gardens for a year after contractors placed bids over 40 percent below the estimated cost. Also, their security deposits were forfeited, and contracts were re-tendered. Despite the action, they continued to bid between 35-40 percent below the estimates. So, the BMC had no option but to award the contract of Rs 50 crores to the same contractors.

Former Opposition leader in the BMC and senior Congress leader Ravi Raja said, “The quality of work will be compromised if the bids are so low. Last year, too, the bids were 40 per cent below the estimated cost. Still, the contract was awarded to the same contractors. The gardens are lying in poor conditions without proper maintenance. So, there should be supervision and proper quality checks.” BMC garden superintendent Jitendra Pardeshi said that no decision regarding the tender hasn’t been taken yet.

Meanwhile, the monthly contractors are appointed for maintaining the gardens in the wards where the existing contract period has ended. The contractor’s work includes providing security, appointing gardeners, pruning overgrown trees and grass, maintaining walkways, if any, and watering plants. The BMC has 1,052 open plots in the city measuring 1,200 acres.