NHAI to invite fresh bids for 38 projects

To restructure projects that failed to attract bidders, the National Highways Authority of India plans to invite fresh bids for 38 highways proposals in the next quarter.

"NHAI is restructuring these 38 projects to make them lucrative for bidders in the wake of the global economic slowdown. The projects after re-designing are likely to be valued between Rs 45,000 crore and Rs 50,000 crore," an official told PTI.

"The highways authority is converting original six-lane plans to four-lane plans wherever necessary while dropping plans to build some flyovers, overbridges and service roads," the official said.

There were no takers for 38 highways projects out of 60 under the National Highways Development Project (NHDP) despite repeated extension of bidding deadlines.

The award of tenders for these 60 expressway projects on build operate and transfer (BOT) basis was supposed to have been completed in 2008. The outlay for the projects was kept at Rs 70,000 crore.

While NHAI could award only 7 projects of 22, bids are under process for the remaining, the official said.

The highways regulator is responsible for the development, maintenance and management of over 66,000 km of national highways in the country and is implementing NHDP.

It infused as much as Rs 20,000 crore in nearly 200 government-funded and PPP (public-private partnership) projects in 2008-09, up by 20 per cent from 2007-08.

Significantly 60 per cent of the expenditure during 2008-09 was made in the last two quarters of the financial year despite the global economic slowdown.