The Karnataka Transparency in Public Procurements (Amendment) Bill, 2021, was passed in the Legislative Assembly on Wednesday to exempt all types of construction works not exceeding ₹2 crore entrusted by any procurement entity to Karnataka Rural Infrastructure Development Ltd. (KRIDL).
The Bill amended the Karnataka Transparency in Public Procurements Act, 1999.
The Karnataka Fiscal Responsibility (Amendment) Bill, 2021, was amended to limit the borrowings at 4% of the GSDP in 2021–22. Last year, amendments to the 2002 Act were made to increase the borrowing limit from 3% to 5% of the GSDP following the pandemic and decline in revenue. The Bill was passed in the Assembly. This also limits the State’s total liabilities to 25% of the GSDP.
The Karnataka Appropriation Bill, 2021, was also passed in the House to draw ₹2.52 crore from the Consolidated Fund of the State during 2021–22.
All these Bills were passed without debate as the Opposition Congress members staged a dharna in the well of the House.
Taking exception to the provisions of the Bill, Leader of the Opposition Siddaramaiah told reporters that the Bill would take away the provision for providing reservation to SC/ST contractors for tenders with a value of less than ₹50 lakh. This is because there would not be a need to go for tenders for projects below ₹2 crore, he pointed out.
