Morung Express News
Kohima | March 13
Upon earnest request from the contractor for extension of the March 31 deadline to complete work construction of the National Highway-2 project from Kohima to Mao gate, the Gauhati High Court Kohima Bench on March 13 has extended the timeline to May 30, with strict conditions.
Among others, the order from the Division Bench comprising of Justices LS Jamir and Kakheto Sema directed the contractor (Fortune Groups) to complete the “existing road from Kohima to Mao on or before May 30, 2023 without compromising on the quality of work.” “Failure on the part of the contractor to complete the work as directed herein above, costs shall be imposed upon the respondent No. 9,” it stated.
The order further added that the “the NHIDCL shall be directed to issue show cause notice to the respondent No. 9/contractor for black-listing” if the work is not completed on the new timeline.
As directed by the Bench during the last hearing on March 8, the contractor made a personal appearance before the court and submitted several reasons for the inability to finish the work as per its own the timeline committed to the court on several occasions.
Meanwhile, the National Highways & Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) was also directed not to “deduct 25 % from the bill submitted by the contractor” citing non-achievement of width as per the TCS (Typical Cross-section).
During the hearing on Monday, the contractor submitted that while approving the COS, the Authority Engineer approved the TCS (Typical Cross-section) of 12 metre wide. However, when work started, it was observed that TCS of 12 metre width was not available on the ground in about 341 locations.
This was duly informed to the Authority Engineer during the first week of December, 2022. However, the Authority Engineer in a most arbitrary manner instructed the contractor to execute the work as per the approved TCS in spite of being fully conscious about the fact that there is a shortfall in width of the road, the contractor added.
The contractor, thus, submitted that “this confusion created by the Authority Engineer has contributed to the delay in the execution of the work.”
Accordingly, besides non deduction of amount from the bill submitted, the Division Bench directed that “no demand for TCS will be made by the NHIDCL to the contractor and the work will be executed on the existing road/ROW.”
“Any bill Page submitted by the contractor shall be paid as expeditiously as possible after joint verification by both parties,” it added.
The contractor had also submitted that in addition to the 25% deduction, the authority (NHIDCL) also “effected a deduction of 10% on the running bills towards non-achievement of milestone and yet another 10% towards other statutory deduction.”
Listing the matter for further hearing on April 12, both the NHIDCL as well as the contractor were further directed to file their respective affidavits on the progress of the work before the next returnable date.
Likewise, the Bench also requested the Amicus Curiae of the case to have an inspection of the work and file an affidavit before the next hearing.
As per the Court’s record, the contract agreement for the project was signed on October 7, 2020. The work should have started on October 20, 2020 and completed by April 22, 2022.
However, as the work on the ground did not get started, the Court took up the matter on Suo Moto on April 2, 2022.
During the process of the hearing, the NHIDCL and the contractor were directed to work-out a work plan including the timelines for completion of the whole project. The March 31 timeline was committed by the contractor in December and has been reiterated further during subsequent hearings last month.
