MAPUSA
The much-awaited work on the new bus stand in Mapusa is expected to kick-start at the beginning of the New Year.
The Goa State Infrastructure Development Corporation (GSIDC) is expected to re-float a tender for miscellaneous works on the construction of the much delayed new bus-stand in the first week of January 2021.
“We are tendering the work again in the first week of January 2021 and by month-end, we will issue the work order,” said GSIDC General Manager Jude Carvalho.
“There is a minor change in the plan. Earlier it was proposed to have two sheds but now there will be only one shed at the site,” he added.
The GSIDC had invited bids for the construction of assorted works at the bus-stand site at an estimated cost of Rs 2.96 crore in February this year.
The tenders were supposed to be opened in March and the successful bidder was expected to get six months to complete all the miscellaneous works at the site.
The GSIDC General Manager informed the earlier tender had to be called off because of the pandemic.
Although the total area of the new bus-stand is around 20,000 sq metres, the GSIDC will take up work on an area of around 10,000 sq metres.
The miscellaneous works entail the installation of pavers, construction of bus shed and toilets, drainage and fencing of the entire area.
It may be recalled that land-filling of the acquired area for the proposed bus-stand was taken up in 2015 as the first phase of work at an estimated cost of Rs 1.32 crore.
In phase two, a 25-metre wide road was supposed to be constructed connecting the new bus-stand to the NH66 about 200 metres before the Mapusa-Bastora junction, while phase three included the construction of the new bus-stand and converting the present bus-stand into a parking lot.
The cost of the bus-stand project was estimated to cost Rs 210 crore and expected to be taken up through the public-private partnership model.
