bmc: Estimates for Byculla Zoo enclosures are not final : Bmc | Bombay News
Mumbai: Responding to allegations of cartelization and cost escalation in bids for the construction of a new set of animal enclosures at Byculla Zoo – a whopping Rs 106 crore above BMC estimates and for which only two companies submitted bids – the BMC said its consultant had only made an estimate per block per square meter and this is not the actual estimate for the animal enclosures.
In a response to former BJP chief executive Vinod Mishra, Sudhir Gajargaonkar, director of BMC (Engineering Services and Projects), said that only block estimates were used to calculate the security deposit (EMD ) for bidders. “Administrative approval from the Competent Authority was obtained on 20.12.2019 to issue a Request for Proposal (RFP) for the concept and design to build a world-class zoo based on the cost-based selection method of Quality (QCBS) As this was a design and build contract and the concept, design and drawings for the works in question were not available, the soo existing consultant HKS Designer & Consultant International Co Ltd has prepared a tentative estimate for the tenders in question based on the recently executed exhibition work in VJB Udyan & Zoo.The rough estimated cost submitted by the consultant is only the overall estimate prepared at the square meter and used only to calculate the amount of EMD, and is in no way comparable to the actual cost quoted by the bidder,” Gajargaonkar said in his response.
Following complaints from Mishra and Mumbai City Custodian Minister Aslam Shaikh, the BMC had demanded an explanation from its Building Maintenance (BM) department on the escalating costs. While the tenders were estimated at Rs 91 crore and Rs 94 crore, the two companies bid Rs 146 crore and Rs 145 crore respectively, an increase of around Rs 106 crore.
“The BMC gave misleading answers. It is shocking that they put out tenders for an animal enclosure to keep exotic animals using black estimates. I asked them to provide me with the new estimates from the consultants where the cost was set at around Rs 135 crore for each case. If these were tenders, why did only two tainted companies participate? I will have no choice but to file a PIL with the Bombay High Court and also a Vigilance/Criminal Complaint with the Anti-Corruption Bureau and Central Vigilance Commission for concealing facts in official communications,” Mishra said.
The BMC had recently launched two tenders – one for the construction of new enclosures for the black jaguar, cheetah, white lion, wallaby, chimpanzee, ring-tailed lemur, mandrill monkey and flamingo. dwarf ; and the other for building exhibits for hippopotamus, African savannah, emu and a bird aviary.
In a response to former BJP chief executive Vinod Mishra, Sudhir Gajargaonkar, director of BMC (Engineering Services and Projects), said that only block estimates were used to calculate the security deposit (EMD ) for bidders. “Administrative approval from the Competent Authority was obtained on 20.12.2019 to issue a Request for Proposal (RFP) for the concept and design to build a world-class zoo based on the cost-based selection method of Quality (QCBS) As this was a design and build contract and the concept, design and drawings for the works in question were not available, the soo existing consultant HKS Designer & Consultant International Co Ltd has prepared a tentative estimate for the tenders in question based on the recently executed exhibition work in VJB Udyan & Zoo.The rough estimated cost submitted by the consultant is only the overall estimate prepared at the square meter and used only to calculate the amount of EMD, and is in no way comparable to the actual cost quoted by the bidder,” Gajargaonkar said in his response.
Following complaints from Mishra and Mumbai City Custodian Minister Aslam Shaikh, the BMC had demanded an explanation from its Building Maintenance (BM) department on the escalating costs. While the tenders were estimated at Rs 91 crore and Rs 94 crore, the two companies bid Rs 146 crore and Rs 145 crore respectively, an increase of around Rs 106 crore.
“The BMC gave misleading answers. It is shocking that they put out tenders for an animal enclosure to keep exotic animals using black estimates. I asked them to provide me with the new estimates from the consultants where the cost was set at around Rs 135 crore for each case. If these were tenders, why did only two tainted companies participate? I will have no choice but to file a PIL with the Bombay High Court and also a Vigilance/Criminal Complaint with the Anti-Corruption Bureau and Central Vigilance Commission for concealing facts in official communications,” Mishra said.
The BMC had recently launched two tenders – one for the construction of new enclosures for the black jaguar, cheetah, white lion, wallaby, chimpanzee, ring-tailed lemur, mandrill monkey and flamingo. dwarf ; and the other for building exhibits for hippopotamus, African savannah, emu and a bird aviary.