The New Indian Express 22.02.2010
BBMP tries to clear the air over tenders
BANGALORE: The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has drawn the public’s ire in recent months for being embroiled in controversies, be it the long-pending elections or its tender process. While the issue of elections is still in the thick of controversy, the tender allocations may have just about succeeded in wriggling out of trouble .
A delegation of power has been issued by the BBMP commissioner Bharat Lal Meena on January 25, which ensures that every designated official, starting from the joint commissioner onwards, has a slab that they can approve.
“This has come into force so that the files are processed smoothly and not delayed at different levels,” said a BBMP official. He said that tending to a file gets delayed as it has to move to the top for approval, but with the slabs in place, every designated official can approve tenders up to a certain limit.
Under the Karnataka Municipal Corporation Act, 1976, section 66 and 97 assigns the commissioner the power to review all the approved files and tenders at any time for verification.
These powers are guided by preconditions set by the commissioner which direct that all tenders have to be cost effective and are processed in a transparent manner in accordance with the provisions, Palike officials said. The tenders cannot be divided and given to contractors, but there will exceptions under special circumstances which have to be approved by the commissioner, it was said.
If the tender amount is more than the allocated slab, it can be referred to the commissioner for consideration with all the relevant details, officials said. The tenders will be reviewed by the central tender committee and their technical team to ensure that the process has been followed efficiently, BBMP officials added.
