The Kerala Water Authority (KWA) is likely to re-tender both components of the 120 million litres a day (mld) Neyyar water supply project, which has been delayed due to a combination of factors, including the COVID-19 pandemic and land disputes.
Fresh bids will reportedly be invited for the construction of the intake system and water treatment plant at Neyyar, as well as for the second critical part of the project, the laying of a main transmission pipeline from Neyyar to the capital city, a senior KWA official said.
Problems had begun stalking the project right from the selection of land for the water treatment plant. The KWA had awarded the ₹56.2 crore contract for constructing the plant at Neyyar to a Thiruvananthapuram-based firm in 2019. Although the State government issued orders transferring six acres of Irrigation Department land to the KWA in February 2020, disputes erupted over land ownership, preventing the contractor from commencing work. Restrictions impelled by the COVID-19 lockdown further added to the problems.
Court moved
Consequent to the delay, the contractor sought a renegotiation of the terms, citing acute cost escalation. But this, reportedly, was not acceptable to the KWA. The contractor had also moved court in this regard. The KWA later identified an alternate site for the treatment plant, but the impasse over the terms persisted, prompting the KWA to consider a re-tender.
For the construction of the transmission main, the KWA had selected an Erode-based firm in February this year. The work involved the supply, laying, testing and commissioning of a 1422-mm, mild steel, clear water gravity main from the Neyyar dam site to the ground-level storage reservoir (GLSR) at PTP Nagar.
Although the KWA issued a selection notice in January, the firm did not take steps to execute the agreement, according to the KWA. It also failed to provide relevant reasons for the delay, the KWA added. Subsequently, a KWA meeting held on March 18 decided to cancel the tender.
Billed as a long-term solution for the water woes of the State capital, the project envisages a supply of 100 mld to the Thiruvananthapuram city and 20 mld to be shared by four grama panchayats in the project area. As per the initial plan, the project should have been commissioned this month.
