From Our Special Correspondent
Daijiworld Media Network - Bangalore

Bangalore, Mar 6: Two Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) projects in Jayanagar and Malleswaram, involving a huge expenditure have drawn public attention with the Karnataka unit of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) alleging unreasonable and illegal hike of tender value, resulting in huge losses to the exchequer.

Speaking to presspersons Ravikrishna Reddy of AAP said that the audit report prepared by the Accountant General office, accessed through a Right to Information query, showed huge enhancement in the tender award for the New Puttanna Theatre and Parking Facility Project in Jayanagar.

While Karnataka Transparency in Public Procurement Act, 1999, permitted only 10 percent enhancement in award of tender, the enhancement in the case of the Jayanagar facility was from the Rs 115.49 crore to the final award of Rs 252.72 crore.

V Manjunatha of AAP, who filed the RTI query, said the progress of work so far was only to the extent of only 7 per cent.

He said that the tender value in the case of the Malleswaram Market in Sampige Road was Rs 64 crore but the final award for Rs 132 crore.

Despite this huge unjustified gap, there was no re-tendering, Manjunatha said and regretted that the progress of work in this case was only four per cent.

He alleged that rules had been blatantly violated because of the BDA was hand-in-glove with a cartel of bidders.

 ''This is nothing but daylight robbery,” the AAP leaders said and demanded inquiry and action against BDA officials.

But BDA Commissioner T Sham Bhatt admitted that there had been a hike in the case of the Jayanagar tender and it was a case of deferred payment. The tender in the case of Malleswaram was still to be finalised, he said.