Foundation stone that was laid by the Margao Municipal Council on September 15, 2015 for the multi-level parking project.
MARGAO: Exactly six years since the foundation stone for the multi-level parking project was laid by the Civic body with much fanfare, the Margao Municipal Council’s ambitious Multi-level Parking project has received the administrative nod for the revised estimates from the Director of Urban Development.
The six-year delay in executing the project, however, will cost the Civic body dearly, as the revised estimate shows that the project will cost the Civic body an additional close to Rs two crore.
While the original cost of multi-level pay parking project was pegged around Rs 5.58 crore when the foundation stone was laid for the project on September 15, 2015, the project cost have now gone up to a whopping Rs 7,55,84,500, a cost overrun amounting to Rs 1.97 crore.
Officials in the know, however, warned that the Urban Development Director’s administrative nod for the Civic body to spend the huge amount will not automatically result in the execution of the project. For, the Civic body is yet to receive all the necessary approvals and sanctions from the PWD, an exercise that has only further delayed the execution of the project. “Unless the Municipal technical officials vigorously pursue the matter with the PWD, including approval for the NIT and other sanctions, the Urban Development Director’s administrative approval will remain only on paper. There are a host of projects which have been pending now for want to tendering and inviting Expression of interest (EOI), the official informed.
The Urban Development Director has accorded the Administrative approval to the Civic body to utilize the one-time Golden Jubilee grants of Rs three crore sanctioned by the government and to utilize the balance funds from the Finance Commission funds or from the Municipal funds.
Incidentally, the Margao Municipal Council has completed 10 years since the government had on August 24, 2011 sanctioned the one-time Golden Jubilee grants to the Civic body to take up a signature project in the commercial capital.
While the Urban Director’s administrative nod may ring in good news, no one in the Civic body has any idea when the project would see light of the day. While the exercise to obtain the remaining approvals is presently underway, sources said the tendering process may take its own time as per the laid down norms.
Foundation stone for the multi-level parking project was laid on September 15, 2015 on the eve of the Margao Municipal polls held in October the same year. The new Council that assumed office around November later floated the tender for execution of the project, but the project did not see light of the day on account of the GST tangle and the GSR rates, forcing the contractor to withdraw from the project.
Since then, the Margao Municipal Council had been on the job to prepare fresh estimates and to obtain the technical and other sanctions, but in vain. While the Urban Development Director’s administrative sanction will resolve the issue of fund availability for the multi-level parking project, officials say the tendering and the execution of the project will depend on how fast the Municipal technical section complete the laid-down procedure.
