Contractors to move court over delay in issue of work orders

Some contractors, on condition of anonymity, said that work orders had not been issued for over 45 days despite the submission of tender documents. A few ‘influential’ contractors were allowed to carry out the jobs without work orders. “Things have come to a point where we have no other option but to go to court or seek the help of the DVAC,” contractors said. 

Citing an example of shoddy work by the Vellore unit office of the department, they said, “The 2-km stretch from Visharam to Kathiavadi has not been completed for months as the department after awarding the contract to lay the road, allowed some smaller contractors to remove a pipeline beneath it. This resulted in losses to the contractor, who had already started the road laying work,” a contractor said. 

Similarly, patch work costing Rs 5.90 crore was to be undertaken needlessly in certain pockets in Wallajahpet, Arakonam and Arcot. The situation could be gauged from the fact that two contractors had to move the court to get contracts worth Rs 12 crore, totally due to departmental errors. Any legitimate demand on part of the contractors led to inordinate delay in getting the bills passed, contractors said. 

Chief engineer (construction and maintenance) N Shanthi said, “I will ask the officials concerned to look into this.” P Subramanian, DE, said, “they may list their issues and problems. But those issues or problems have not come to my notice.” However, department staff, who sensed that the media had got wind of the issues, reportedly cleared payment arrears to the tune of Rs 2 crore to a contractor.