NH-2 Road Project: HC allows NHIDCL to proceed with short term maintenance tenders

October 7, 2024 3 Views No Comment

Morung Express News
Dimapur | October 7

The Gauhati High Court Kohima Bench (GHCKB) has permitted the National Highways & Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) to proceed with two tenders floated on August 8, 2024, for the short-term maintenance of National Highway 2, covering the Kohima to Mao stretch.

The first tender addresses a 8.46 km stretch (Km 185.540 to Km 194.000), while the second covers 18.334 km (Km 194.000 to Km 212.334). The maintenance for the 8.46 km stretch is to be completed within two months, while the second, longer stretch, must be completed within three months from the date the work order is issued or the Contract Agreement is executed.

“The NHIDCL shall proceed with the tender processes initiated by the two NITs, both dated August 28, 2024, and bring the same to its logical conclusion at the earliest,” stated the order issued by the GHCKB Division Bench of Justices Manish Choudhury and Kakheto Sema on October 4. The court also granted the NHIDCL the liberty to extend the submission period for the notice inviting tenders (NITs) by seven days, until October 15.

The next hearing of the suo motu public interest litigation (PIL) is scheduled for October 23, with the NHIDCL authorities directed to submit a status report on the tender processes.

Differences between contractor & NHIDCL
On September 4, the NHIDCL informed the court that despite assurances to make the Kohima-Mao Highway “pothole-free” by August 30, the condition of several stretches had deteriorated significantly, jeopardising public safety and drawing criticism from both the public and the State Government.

The NHIDCL accused the contractor(M/s Fortune Groups) of failing to adhere to deadlines and fulfill maintenance requirements.

The NHIDCL had previously issued a notice to the contractor on August 25, outlining these failures and informing the contractor of the proposed action to carry out maintenance at the contractor’s risk and cost, in accordance with the Contract Agreement.
Based on the recommendations of the Authority Engineer of the project, two NITs were subsequently issued.

However, during the hearing on September 4, the Court instructed the NHIDCL not to open the tenders but encouraged the NHIDCL and the contractor to negotiate a solution that would benefit the public.

The negotiations proved unsuccessful, as both parties informed the bench on October 3 that no amicable settlement could be reached.

The contractor’s counsel further informed the court that on September 18, the contractor had issued a notice of termination to the NHIDCL, invoking clauses under the Contract Agreement.

Despite this, the court stated that the termination of the Contract Agreement was not an issue to be addressed at this stage, while further noting that a “cure period” of 90 days remained as per the agreement.

During the October 3 hearing, the court observed that the NHIDCL had issued a fresh NIT for the same stretches of the highway on September 11, 2024, after removing the “Risk and Cost Clause” included in the previous tenders dated August 28.

The court warned that issuing a fresh NIT while the matter of the earlier NITs was still under consideration suggested contempt of court.

The NHIDCL tendered an apology on October 4 and informed the court that the September 11 NIT had been canceled.

According to the Contract Agreement of the “Upgradation of the existing road to a 2-lane with paved shoulders” from Kohima to Mao” between the NHIDCL and the contractor for which the tender process was originally floated in October 2020, the stipulated period for completion of the project was 18 months.

However, as stressed by the Court on October 3, despite the contract period having expired, only 74.23% of the physical work and 72.13% of the financial progress had been completed as on September 4.

To this end, the Court underscored the NHIDCL’s obligation to ensure the safety of the public throughout the construction period of the project and bring the two tender processes to its logical conclusion at the earliest in a proper manner.