CAG slams Bihar govt firm for not following norms in inviting tenders

Neither the transparency in the selection of consultants was maintained nor payment was linked to deliverables or progress of work. These have resulted in time over-run and undue benefits to consultants, it said.

The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) has pulled up the Bihar Rajya Pul Nirman Nigam Limited (BRPNNL), a state-owned company under the control of the Road Construction Department, for inviting tenders for the construction of three flyovers in Patna before obtaining administrative approval.

The CAG also flagged irregularities, including under-assessment of taxes, in various revenue sector departments in the fiscal year ended March 2019.

“The BRPNNL in violation of codal provision not only invited tenders and commenced the works of three flyovers (R-Block, Karbigahiya and Lohiya Path Chakra) but also made payment of Rs 66.25 crore to the contractor prior to technical sanction,” the CAG has observed in the report tabled in the state assembly on Thursday. “Neither the transparency in the selection of consultants was maintained nor payment was linked to deliverables or progress of work. These have resulted in time over-run and undue benefits to consultants,” it said. Scrutiny of records revealed that no traffic survey was conducted to assess the requirement of flyovers while planning for two of the projects -- R-Block and Karbigahiya, said the report.

In the absence of any traffic census/data, it could not be verified whether these flyovers were properly designed and whether the number width of the traffic lanes provided in flyovers was sufficient to cater to the requirement, the CAG observed.