Chennai: Chief minister C Joseph Vijay’s announcement in Karur that his govt had cancelled the tender for a flyover in Chennai as the project cost had been inflated to nearly double the actuals has left civic officials guessing as which project was he referring to.As of July, Chennai had only two major flyover tenders in the pipeline — the ₹310-crore Velachery flyover proposed by Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) and the ₹2,100-crore Thiruvanmiyur-Uthandi elevated corridor on East Coast Road (ECR) being executed by Tamil Nadu State Highways Authority (TASHA). Officials associated with both projects denied any report citing “inflated costs.”GCC officials said the Velachery flyover tender has already been withdrawn as the alignment conflicted with Chennai Metro Rail and funding constraints, not because of cost escalation.“The project had alignment issues and GCC itself does not have ₹300 crore. Some components could be trimmed to reduce costs, but there was never any finding that the estimate was inflated twofold. We also did not give such a report to the CM office,” a senior official said.The second project, the 13.3-km ECR elevated toll corridor, is currently under financial and feasibility review. However, TASHA officials said they have received no order cancelling the tender. “The ECR tender has not been cancelled. The project has not taken off yet, but the L1 contractor has already been selected. Any decision rests with the govt. We can comment only after receiving official cancellation orders,” a TASHA official told TOI.The ₹2,100-crore project had earlier been stalled after the L2 bidder, the Bhopal-based Buildcon Ltd, challenged the award of the contract to Hyderabad-based KNR Constructions in Madras high court, claiming it had quoted nearly ₹600 crore less than the winning bid. While the court initially stayed the project, it later directed the company to seek reconsideration from the state government. After no representation was made, the work order was issued.The project follows the Hybrid Annuity Model (HAM), under which the government funds 40% of the project while the contractor finances the remaining 60% through debt or equity and recovers the investment through govt payments or toll revenue.“There are discussions about the project being dropped. As this is a HAM model, it may have legal implications if cancelled, as the contractor has been chosen after technical and financial scrutiny. The contractor has also taken loans with interests. The decision rests with the govt,” the TASHA official said.
