Amid fears of liquidity crunch, bidders seek and get time; much-delayed project not likely to start till March-endThe wait for the much-needed connectivity between Mumbai and the hinterland has just grown longer. The work on the state government’s ambitious sea link between Sewri and Nhava, scheduled initially to start by January, is now expected to wait till March-end, the reason being that the Maharashtra State Road Development Authority (MSRDC), on request of bidders, has extended by three months the dates for submission of their proposals.“All 22 bidders requested us to extend the submission dates as they needed more time to put in reasonable bids. We’ve accepted it and extended the dates to February-end,” said Anil Deshmukh, Minister for Public Works Department (Public Undertakings).The Rs 6,000-crore project has been embroiled in several controversies since its inception in the 1970s. The latest obstacle, officials believe, has come because bidders for the 22.5-km link are worried about a liquidity crunch. Asked if the bidders had indeed been prompted by the financial crisis, Deshmukh said: “They required more time to carry out a few more studies.” Satish Gavai, vice chairman and managing director of MSRDC, justified the extension. “The bidders have not cited the reason of the global meltdown for the extension but the need more time to put in a reasonable bid. And from the point of view of the cost effectiveness of the project the extension was necessary,” Gavai said.This now means that work, which was slated to start by January 26, may begin much later. A senior bureaucrat explained: “After the bids come in by February-end, the evaluation process will take nearly a month. In the meantime, there is every possibility that the code of conduct will be announced around that time for parliamentary elections.” That means key decisions will then have to be kept on hold. The construction is to be on a turnkey basis and it involves an approach road on the Sewri side, a bridge across inter-tidal zone on both sides, a deep sea zone, a viaduct and embankments.The proposed eight-lane sea link, starting at Messant Road on the eastern side of Sewri railway station on Harbour Line, will through the creek waters, meet the mainland near Shivaji Nagar and end on National Highway 4B at Chirle in Navi Mumbai. If and when built, it will cut the total distance by 15 km and reduce travel time from two hours to about 30 minutes.PWD minister lives in hopePWD Minister Anil Deshmukh is optimistic that the slowdown is temporary. Excerpts from a conversation with Swapnil Rawal:* With the economic slowdown creeping in, how has it affected infrastructure projects in the city and the state?The slowdown is a temporary phase. We do not expect that it will have a great impact on the projects for the city and the state, though there has been a marginal impact on a few projects.* With a liquidity crunch faced by contractors, where banks are making it tougher for them to get loans, will the government step in to push crucial projects?It is true that private players are finding it harder to raise funds for projects and financial institutions making it tougher to borrow funds, and that no decision has been taken so far whether the government would invest fully in infrastructure projects in the city.* In this situation, can the government make the environment more conducive for private players by way of some concessions or even investing some equity into some projects?We can definitely make the prerequisites flexible for the tenders we float for project in future¿like in the case of Inland Passenger Water Transport Project, where no bidders came forward to submit the bids fearing losses due to the economic slump. We’re now in the process of inviting fresh tenders with flexible conditions.
