Councillors call for return to zone-wise roadwork tenders

Chennai Corporation councillors have urged the civic body to revert to zone-wise roadwork tenders, saying the current system of large packages leads to delays, substandard work, and corruption.

They noted that the DMK, in its 2021 Assembly election manifesto, had promised to overhaul the package system, but the commitment remains unfulfilled.

Ward 4 Councillor R. Jayaraman said that when a single contractor handles multiple roads across Tiruvottiyur, Sholinganallur, and Ambattur, attention to individual areas suffers. “Contractors with connections to the ruling party often dodge responsibilities, ignore residents and local authorities, and compromise on quality. In my ward, relaying roads took over eight months even after the tender was finalised, yet the resurfaced roads had to be redone because the work was uneven and substandard,” he said.

“The large package system, introduced during the AIADMK government, saw many issues and gaps in road relaying for many months across the city. To curb the problems, the DMK had promised in its 2021 Assembly election manifesto to revert to a zone-wise tendering process, but this commitment has not been fulfilled,” he added.

Several DMK councillors from newly-added areas, speaking on condition of anonymity, added that opposition councillors can raise complaints openly, while ruling party councillors face constraints. “Zone-wise tenders would allow the fining or blacklisting of contractors in case of repeated defaults without disrupting work across multiple locations,” a councillor said.

A member of the Standing Committee (Works) explained that tenders are issued according to the Corporation’s standard operating procedures, which limit the number of participants to four or five.

“Only if the SOPs are amended — particularly those relating to clearance from the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board [TNPCB] — can roadwork tenders be issued on a zone-wise basis,” the member added.

“Relaxing TNPCB norms may impact the environment, obviously. But, some considerations can be made for important basic services; this can be considered,” he said.