CHENNAI: A day after cancelling the 1000 ebus procurement tender, the Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) has sought to reverse the cancellation of its tender for procuring 1,000 air-conditioned electric buses, stating that it was cancelled inadvertently, and requested an extension of the bid submission deadline to November 4.

In a letter dated October 14 to the National Informatics Centre (NIC), MTC chairman requested that the cancellation of the tender be revoked and it restored to its previous status. The original bid deadline was October 14.

MTC also submitted an undertaking accepting responsibility for the legal implications of revoking the cancellation, stating that the move would not violate any applicable law and that the corporation would be responsible for any legal or governmental proceedings arising from the decision.

The tender covers the procurement, supply, operation and maintenance of 1,000 low-floor, 12-metre air-conditioned electric buses. MTC had cancelled it on Tuesday, citing administrative reasons, after extending the bid-opening date multiple times.

The tender was floated in March under the gross cost contract (GCC) model, ahead of the announcement of the Assembly election schedule. The TVK government had allocated Rs 500 crore in the state budget for procuring the buses and upgrading depot infrastructure to accommodate the fleet.

Meanwhile, MTC's separate tender for 220 air-conditioned low-floor electric feeder buses has closed without receiving any bids. The proposed fleet comprises 70 seven-metre buses and 150 five-metre buses intended to provide first- and last-mile connectivity to Chennai Metro stations.

The buses were to operate as conductor-less services with onboard fare collection systems on routes identified by the Chennai Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority (CUMTA) and Chennai Metro Rail Ltd (CMRL) within a 5-km primary influence area of Metro stations.

The seven-metre buses were to have at least 13 seats and one wheelchair space, while the five-metre buses were to have 11 seats and one wheelchair space.

The setbacks follow the cancellation of an earlier tender for 500 electric buses funded by German development bank KfW. The previous DMK government had cited technical reasons for cancelling that tender, with officials indicating that the procurement model would be changed to GCC.