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Dredger procurement: State Govt to float global tender

By Ajit Patowary

GUWAHATI, July 20 - The State Government is going to float the third tender for procuring a dredger to deepen the beds of some of the highly silt-yielding tributaries of the Brahmaputra and Barak rivers on an experimental basis. This tender will invite bids from global manufacturers. The previous two tenders floated for the purpose, invited bids from national-level manufacturers.

Sources in the State Water Resources Department (WRD) told this correspondent that the State Revenue Department has sanctioned an amount of Rs 18 crore for procuring the dredger and other equipment under the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) for the scheme titled Procurement of fleet of machineries for dredging/excavation in the tributaries of rivers Brahmaputra and Barak.

The previous two tenders were floated in the financial year of 2017-18. Only one firm took part in the bidding and it also failed to meet the specifications sought for by the advisory committee of the State Government. The State Government set up the advisory committee with experts from the IIT-Guwahati, Assam Engineering College, State Inland Water Transport Department (IWT), the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) and the WRD.

WRD sources said that the Indian manufacturers failed to meet the specifications, necessitating a global tender for the purpose. The advisory committee explained this to the State WRD Minister in the last part of June this year.

Following this meeting of the advisory committee with the WRD Minister, the WRD sought early this month the concurrence of the State�s Revenue Department for the global tender so that world-class manufacturers can take part in the bidding process.

The bids being made by the manufacturers in this process would be examined by the advisory committee so as to make things transparent, said the sources.

Meanwhile, the Central sector Water and Power Consultancy Services Ltd (WAPCOS) has submitted a techno-commercial proposal to the Central Water Commission (CWC) on matters related to dredging of the bed of the Brahmaputra to improve the carrying capacity of its channel and also to build two express highways along its banks, among others.

The WAPCOS has been engaged by the Union Government to prepare the detailed project report (DPR) in these respects. After completion of the DPR, the exact picture concerning the amount of money needed to execute dredging and other related works would become clear.

The State Government has by this time submitted a report of the survey carried out by the WRD on the proposed express highways along the banks of the Brahmaputra and the concept note it has prepared on the above topics to the Union Government, said the sources.

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