The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government is considering procuring mechanised vacuum cleaners from Punjab to keep its road cleaning project, a measure to combat dust pollution, on track.
A senior government official said that efforts are under way to work out the feasibility of the proposal. The Public Works Department (PWD) is considering the move as no local business has taken up the tender, despite several attempts, to provide the service.
“We are looking at the feasibility of procuring mechanised vacuum cleaners from Punjab, mainly Bhatinda. We are preparing a proposal that will be submitted to the Delhi Cabinet soon,” said the official, adding that the service was available at competitive rates in Punjab, compared to Delhi, as it had a larger number of vendors.
Expensive start
After the project proved expensive when private Delhi-based vendors were roped in, the PWD began working on a proposal to import machines.
The initiative, which is at the core of the Delhi government’s anti-air pollution drive, was initially executed by the PWD with just four foreign-manufactured machines procured from private contractors. Cleaning was done on just a handful of over 1,200 kilometres of arterial stretches beginning April 1 last year.
Tenders unsuccessful
Paid for on a per-kilometre basis, the expenditure on the initiative proved “non-feasible” which, as per a senior government official, formed the basis for its decision to float a proposal to procure them on its own. However, it was not successful in getting service providers to the government’s doorstep following which tenders were floated again and again with similar lack of success.
