In Kolkata, the Park Circus-Parama Island flyover, a crucial project under Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), which was scheduled to be completed by August 2012, has now missed its revised deadline of August, 2013. There is no way it can meet its second amended deadline of December 2013. It is going to be city’s longest flyover.
And now, RITES has been assigned to conduct a technical and cost escalation study of the Rs 300-crore flyover – addressing the hurdle areas which made construction major Hindustan Construction Company (HCC) submit an enhanced bill of Rs 226.52 crore to the government.
The public sector company, run by the railways, will also go through the design which was changed due to the brick sewerage beneath the flyover.
RITES is expected to submit its report by July 31 and the state Cabinet may clear the recommendations by September so that work can commence by October-end. While a board meeting of the Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority (KMDA), the project implementing agency, has cleared the enhanced cost, the finance department has refused to pass it because the contractors had to abide by the original cost of Rs 300 crore.
A new tendering process must be initiated to accommodate the steep hike of 70 per cent. That, too, justifying the increase. The cash-strapped Bengal government approached the Centre, but was told that it wasn’t liable to bear any additional cost incurred due to delay.
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