Contractors stay away over rising costs; demand rate revision amid Middle East crisis
Ovaise Gul
Srinagar, Jun 05: The much-awaited macadamisation works across Jammu and Kashmir are facing delays as contractors have largely stayed away from the tendering process, citing a sharp increase in the cost of essential construction materials amid the ongoing Middle East crisis, leaving several roads in deteriorated condition, and public frustration is growing.
According to the contractors, the situation in the Middle East has triggered a rise in prices of key inputs required for road surfacing works, making existing government-approved rates financially unviable. They have demanded a revision of macadamisation rates to reflect current market realities, but no response has been received from the government so far.
The government, on May 11, approved a massive macadamisation plan estimated at around Rs 223 crore, with a proposed allocation of nearly Rs 155.83 crore to cover 558.76 kilometres of roads across Kashmir, including 178.60 km in central Kashmir, 194.60 km in north Kashmir, and 185.56 km in south Kashmir.
However, as soon as tenders were floated, there has been minimal response from contractors. Bashir Ahmad Khan, President of the J&K Hot Mix Plant Association, told Rising Kashmir that market rates of key inputs have gone up, but the government is least bothered to consider the situation.
“Keeping in view such an issue, no contractor is ready to work as per the mentioned rates and wants the government to revise the rates,” Khan said. “Despite having 140 qualified units in J&K, contracts in the past have been given to others, which ended up damaging roads after a short span of time. The issue was also highlighted in the Legislative Assembly.”
Khan further added that recently, executing agencies and treasuries across Jammu and Kashmir were barred from releasing developmental payments to contractors without a valid Royalty Clearance Certificate (RCC). “However, the government remains tight-lipped over identifying the places and units where royalty blocks would be available for contractors. Such chaos should be addressed so that contractors take up work regarding the development of J&K,” he said.
The crisis comes amid broader financial distress faced by contractors across the Union Territory. The Jammu & Kashmir Contractors Coordination Committee (JKCCC) recently flagged that contractors working under the Jal Jeevan Mission are awaiting nearly Rs 1,500 crore in pending payments, while liabilities of around Rs 72 crore under the R&B sector and nearly Rs 80 crore related to macadamisation works are also pending.
JKCCC Chairman Ghulam Jeelani Purza said contractors have executed works in difficult circumstances but are now struggling due to the non-release of legitimate dues, with repeated representations over the past two years yielding no concrete results.
Residents in many areas, especially in Old City areas of Srinagar, including Habba Kadal, Mandir Bagh, Gow Kadal, and adjacent areas, have expressed concern over the poor state of roads. With no breakthrough yet between contractors and authorities, public frustration continues to grow as road repair and maintenance works remain stalled.
The government had mandated e-tendering for all contracts and prohibited fragmentation of works, but the rate revision deadlock has effectively halted progress. Tender notices for macadamisation works remain open, but contractor participation has been sparse.
