Shillong: The Public Health Engineering Department awarded the New Shillong Water Supply Scheme Phase-II to BAC Infratech Private Limited for Rs 924.32 crore. This contract follows persistent claims of favoritism dogging the department. Officials confirmed BAC Infratech won the deal as the lowest bidder.
Competitors missed the mark. Bennyshar N Marak bid Rs 947.79 crore while SREE UGCL Projects Limited came in at Rs 956.63 crore. Officials rejected bids from Ajay R Marak and ND Enterprises during the evaluation stage. The state government opened online tenders for the work after initially pegging costs over Rs 850 crore.
BAC Infratech previously finished Phase-I of the same project. That phase saw costs jump from a sanctioned Rs 538.44 crore to Rs 772.96 crore. The department blamed this price hike on technical and environmental changes. Critics remain vocal about the state giving the company projects worth nearly Rs 1,900 crore. As one critic noted, "The PHE Department has faced persistent criticism for allegedly favouring the firm."
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