CHENNAI: PMK president Anbumani Ramadoss questioned the TVK government on Friday over its decision to cancel a tender to procure 1,000 electric buses for the Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) in Chennai and revoke the order the following day, alleging administrative indecision.

In a statement, Anbumani said the government announced the cancellation on October 14, citing administrative reasons, but the MTC later clarified that the cancellation notice was issued inadvertently and that the tendering process would continue.

Stressing the need for consistent administrative decisions, Anbumani urged the government to examine issues thoroughly before making decisions and ensure they are implemented firmly, instead of making hasty announcements and reversing them immediately.

The tender for procuring 1,000 electric buses was floated in March this year. However, the announcement of Assembly elections, the subsequent change of government and repeated extensions of the bid submission deadline had delayed the process.

Questioning how such a significant decision could be reversed within a day, Anbumani said government decisions pass through several levels of officials, from section officers to directors and secretaries. He argued that the confusion could not be attributed solely to officials and that those responsible for policy decisions should be held accountable.

He also reiterated his party's opposition to procuring electric buses under the Gross Cost Contract (GCC) model adopted by the previous DMK government under its agreement with the World Bank. He claimed that the arrangement would pave the way for the privatisation of the MTC.

If the tender had been cancelled over concerns about the model, the government should have stood by its decision instead of reversing it, he said.