BMC to float tenders worth Rs 2,100 cr to resurface roads
Budget raised despite BMC’s failure to spend more than 50% of estimates
In the coming months, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation will sanction contracts worth over Rs 2,100 crore to resurface and reconstruct various major and minor roads across the city this fiscal.
This is a substantially higher allocation for such work as compared to previous years when a total budget of about Rs 1,000-1,400 crore was allocated for repair works. Moreover, the budget has been raised despite the civic body’s consistent failure to spend more than 50 per cent of its budget estimates every fiscal.
According to the civic roads department, the contracts for asphalting and concretising various stretches are under way and are likely to be awarded to contractors before year-end. Noticeably, unlike previous years, the BMC has dedicated major allocations for roads in the suburbs instead of the island city with a higher provision for asphalting roads rather than concretisation.
“The budgeted amount includes expenditure to complete pending works from the previous fiscal as well. This may have led the outlay to seem inflated. While new work may take some time to be commissioned as the state Assembly elections are round the corner, repair and resurfacing work that were put on hold during monsoon will continue after October 1,” said R A Pawar, chief engineer of the roads department.
Out of a total budget of Rs 2,140 crore for reconstruction and repair of roads, around Rs 1,035 crore has been set aside to employ mastic asphalt technology for resurfacing. Of this, maximum allocation has been made to the eastern suburbs, where about Rs 435 crore has been committed. In the island city and western suburbs, the civic body has allocated about Rs 278 crore and Rs 322 crore, respectively.
As part of its long-term plan to convert various major and minor stretches in Mumbai, this year about Rs 895 crore has been set aside for such works. In the island city, the corporation has allotted Rs 177 crore to concretise roads. The western suburbs, at Rs 501 crore, have the highest amount budgeted for concretising, while the eastern suburbs have been allotted Rs 217 crore for such work.
The large budget allocation for reconstruction and repair of roads in Mumbai also includes a sizeable chunk dedicated to improving minor roads in Mumbai. A total of Rs 210 crore has been budgeted for these works, which includes a provision of Rs 114 crore for the western suburbs, Rs 60 crore for the island city and Rs 36 crore for the eastern suburbs.
alison.saldanha@expressindia.com
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