Baripada, September 9:Local contractors have submitted a written complaint to the District Collector alleging widespread irregularities and discrimination in the tender process conducted by Baripada Municipality for various developmental and construction works.
According to the complaint, the Municipal Administration had invited tenders for several development projects through Notification No. 1370 dated August 18, 2026. Although the contractors participating in the tender process submitted the required documents as per the prescribed procedure, work orders were allegedly issued for certain projects in violation of the stipulated rules.
The contractors have particularly alleged a lack of transparency in the tenders for construction of a CC road with a guard wall from the house of Sanat Jena near Pilot Sahi School to the house of Gopinath Giri in Ward No. 15; construction of a guard wall from the house of Tapan Babu to the house of Arun Kumar Mishra in Ward No. 26; and construction of a compound wall inside the Smart Park in Ward No. 9.
The complaint further alleges that applications submitted by other eligible contractors were rejected without assigning any valid reason, while undue favour was allegedly shown to a few selected contractors, resulting in an open violation of the prescribed tender procedures.
The contractors have also drawn the attention of senior officials, including the Executive Officer, who is the head of the Tender Committee, the Municipal Engineer, the Tehsildar and the Assistant GST Commissioner. They alleged that the tender process was conducted under the direction of the Municipal Chairperson.
Local contractors including Pradeep Kumar Mahanta, Jayanta Lenka, Abhishek Mandal, Prasanna Kumar Behera, Rajendra Pradhan and Amar Kumar Pattnaik have strongly demanded immediate cancellation of the alleged irregular work orders and a fresh tender process in a transparent and impartial manner in accordance with government rules.
Meanwhile, Municipal Executive Officer Debi Prasad Rout said in his reaction that he was not present during the tender process concerned. He stated that the tender had therefore been cancelled and that a fresh tender process would be conducted.
