Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, Dec 16: Patnitop aerial ropeway, the dream project of Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, has again hit the rough weather as the Government has terminated the contract with the Hyderabad-based company following serious differences over the escalated cost. With this the allotment process has to be started afresh which will take considerable time before reaching the logical conclusion in view of the involved procedural formalities.
Official sources told EXCELSIOR that after the process of obtaining clearances from various quarters came to an end in the middle of this year, the Patnitop Development Authority started writing to the senior officers of the M/s Nagarjuna Construction Company with the request to start mobilizing men and machinery for execution of the project.
Even some meetings between the State Government officers and representatives of the Hyderabad-based company were convened but the same too failed to yield any positive result as company doesn’t consider investment of Rs 150 crore as against earlier project cost of Rs 52 crore viable, sources said.
“The company has explicitly told the J&K Government that it is apprehensive about good returns after investing such a whopping amount in the project and it can consider execution of the project only when some sort of financial assistance is provided either by the Patnitop Development Authority or any other agency of the State”, sources informed.
They said, “since the project is to be executed on Built-Own-Operate-Transfer (BOOT) basis, the State Government cannot provide any aid to the Hyderabad-based company”, adding “the State Government is of the opinion that even if some assistance is arranged for the company the same would set wrong precedence in respect of other mega projects being presently executed or going to be started in near future”.
Keeping in view this aspect, the Government few days back itself terminated contract vis-à-vis construction of aerial ropeway in Patnitop with M/s Nagarjuna Company, sources said, adding “now, when everything is in place for start of the work, the project allotment process has to be started afresh and the same will take considerable time before reaching the logical conclusion”.
Sources informed that on the directions of the Government, the Patnitop Development Authority has floated Expression of Interest (EoI) inviting interested, financially sound and technically experienced agencies for financing, design, supply, installation, testing, commissioning and subsequent operation and maintenance of passenger ropeway system in two sections.
The first section is from Kud near KM 99 of NH1A to Sangote village having length of 1282 meters and the second from Sangote to Patnitop near Hotel Vardhan having length of 2619 meters.
“Though the authorities of the Tourism Department headed by Chief Minister, Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, are optimistic about early allotment of project afresh on BOOT basis, no specific time-frame can be fixed keeping in view the lengthy process involved in allotment of project”, sources said, adding “how many companies would actually evince interest in the project, whose fate is hanging during the past more than one decade, remains a million dollar question especially in the light of J&K’s track record of delaying the projects”.
When asked about any plan to get the project executed through J&K State Cable Car Corporation, sources said, “this option cannot be explored in the light of poor financial health of the Corporation”, adding “actually decision about execution of project on Built-Own-Operate and Transfer (BOOT) basis was taken in view of resources constraints”.
“The hanging fate of Patnitop aerial ropeway, which is the dream project of Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, will also create impediments in the proposed aerial ropeway between Patnitop and Mantalai, the decision about which was taken in the Board of Directors meeting of the Patnitop Development Authority in the month of June this year”, sources said.
It is pertinent to mention here that Patnitop aerial ropeway project was announced by the Mufti Mohammad Sayeed during his earlier stint as Chief Minister of the State.
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