Free Pass to Contractors Without Guarantee In Multi-Crore AMC Projects, DLP Made Mandatory

The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation's (AMC) Road and Building Committee has directed officials to make the Defect Liability Period (DLP) mandatory in all civil work tenders after it found that several proposals worth crores were floated without the clause, potentially allowing contractors to escape responsibility for poor-quality work.

The issue came to light during the committee meeting held on Monday, where members observed that the Municipal Engineering Department had omitted the DLP clause from multiple tenders. Committee Chairman Jainik Vakil objected to the omission, terming it a serious lapse, and instructed officials to ensure that every work order includes the mandatory liability period as prescribed in the Standard Bidding Document.

Crore-Worth Projects Found Without DLP Clause

The committee found that several proposals placed for approval did not specify any defect liability period despite involving major civic works.

These included:

• Civil works at Veer Savarkar Sports Complex in Saijpur Ward.
• Annual Rate Contract (ARC) for RCC roads and paver blocks in Khadia Ward.
• ARC works for grills and paver blocks in the North-West Zone.
• Installation of thermoplastic road markings, signboards, bollards and lane markers across various roads.

The committee noted that in the absence of a DLP clause, contractors would not be held responsible if defects appeared after completion of the works.

DLP Made Mandatory as Per Tender Norms

Following the committee's intervention, all proposals were approved only after incorporating the mandatory DLP condition.

Under the Standard Bidding Document:

During this period, contractors remain responsible for rectifying defects arising from poor workmanship or material quality.

Committee Pushes for Savings in Subhash Bridge Project

The committee also reviewed the consultancy charges for the upcoming Subhash Bridge project and directed officials to reduce the design consultancy fee.

The design fee has been reduced from 1.7% to 1.4%, resulting in estimated savings of ₹3.37 crore. Officials have also been asked to negotiate the Project Management Consultancy (PMC) fee, taking the total expected savings to nearly ₹7 crore.

Proposal for New Vegetable Market in Gota Returned

The committee sent back a proposal to construct a new vegetable market in Gota Ward, citing the poor utilisation of several existing vegetable markets across Ahmedabad.

According to Chairman Jainik Vakil, many markets built earlier remain unused while encroachments continue, making it unjustifiable to approve new construction before existing facilities become operational.

Bodakdev Present Area Proposal Also Sent Back

A proposal to develop the TP Road stretch from Mansi Circle to Himalaya Mall via Vastrapur Lake and Shaheed Chowk as a Present Area was also returned.

The committee observed that nearly half of the proposed works are already carried out routinely at the zonal level. Officials have been directed to resubmit the proposal after comparing routine work rates with tender rates and obtaining comments from the City Engineer.

New GST-Based Tender Format Introduced

The committee also identified discrepancies in the manner officials were presenting GST calculations in tender proposals.

According to the chairman, officials were preparing tenders using the old Schedule of Rates (SOR) and separately proposing GST payments despite GST already being included in material rates, resulting in undue financial benefits for contractors.

To prevent such discrepancies, the committee has directed officials to adopt a revised tender format that separately mentions:

The new format is expected to improve transparency in tender evaluation and prevent excess payments to contractors.