Ejipura flyover: BBMP opens escrow account to prevent diversion of funds

Original contractor directed to complete pending work

July 31, 2021 09:59 am | Updated November 22, 2021 09:55 pm IST - Bengaluru

The work order for the Ejipura signal to Kendriya Sadan elevated corridor in Koramangala had been issued in May 2017. The project was to be completed by November 2019.

The work order for the Ejipura signal to Kendriya Sadan elevated corridor in Koramangala had been issued in May 2017. The project was to be completed by November 2019.

 

It appears that work on the elevated corridor at Koramangala’s Sony World Junction, connecting Ejipura and Kendriya Sadan, will be taken up again. Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has directed the contractor Simplex Infrastructure Ltd. to complete the work as soon as possible.

Senior officials told The Hindu that the civic body had earlier contemplated terminating the tender awarded to Simplex and float a fresh tender. However, following several rounds of deliberations with representatives of the company, the civic body decided to allow Simplex to complete the work.

Simplex had also bagged the tender for construction of the elevated section of Namma Metro’s Pink Line on Bannerghatta Road. However, with the contractor not able to execute the project as per the tender conditions, the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd. (BMRCL) had terminated the contract.

An official said that to ensure that funds released for the ₹203-crore elevated corridor project are not diverted by the company towards servicing other financial liabilities, the civic body had opened an escrow account. To ensure that the work is completed soon, minor changes had been made in the design that would allow assembly of pre-cast elements at the work site.

 

Work on the 2.5-km-long elevated corridor had stalled for more than six months. Around 45% of the work had been completed. The delay, officials admitted, is also partly because of a delay by the BBMP in clearing bills. So far, the BBMP has paid ₹72 crore to the contractor, an official said.

The work order had been issued in May 2017 and the project was to be completed by November 2019. Of 81 pillars for the elevated corridor, only 67 have been constructed.

The High Court of Karnataka has taken note of the inordinate delay in completing the work. On July 29, the court directed the BBMP to state a timeline for completion of work.

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