Manipur Contractors Demand Priority in PMGSY-III Road Bids

Imphal: The All Manipur Contractors Association Forum (AMCAF) is demanding the Ministry of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj speed up tender evaluations for PMGSY-III. Local contractors fear losing work to outside companies. They want the government to prioritize state-based firms for all new work orders.

Convenor Thangjam Somarendra pointed to a proven track record. State contractors built 1,913 roads and 211 bridges during the first two phases of the scheme. These local builders handled the heavy lifting for years. Now, Somarendra says they are getting squeezed out.

New rules are the problem. AMCAF claims that the National Rural Infrastructure Development Agency changed the Standard Bidding Document and Notice Inviting Tender clauses. These changes effectively bar local contractors from bidding on current projects. Somarendra noted, "The implementation of PMGSY-III has remained pending, even as several roads across Manipur are in poor condition."

Officials announced the technical evaluation for 96 road works on July 31. They promised to finish the review in five days. That deadline passed weeks ago without a result. The forum is now pushing for a swift conclusion to the process to fix the state's crumbling infrastructure.