Coastal-Pappu JV likely to be blacklisted

Kathmandu, November 20

Due to the inferior construction works and failure to complete development projects on schedule, the Public Procurement Monitoring Office under the Prime Minister’s Office has started the process to ban Coastal-Pappu JV from any bidding process in the future.

Publishing a notice today, the Public Procurement Monitoring Office (PPMO), has said that it is currently studying the files related to the Sikta irrigation project located in Banke district. The PPMO has alleged that Coastal-Pappu JV has not been working in an effective manner. “If we allow the company to participate in any tender process and award it any contract in the future it will introduce more obstacles to the country’s development process,” the notice says.

As Coastal-Pappu JV had not made progress in the construction works of the Sikta irrigation project as per the clauses in the contract, its contract had been terminated on November 7. After the termination of the contract, the project had forwarded the file to PPMO and also urged it to blacklist the contractor.

As per the project, Coastal-Pappu JV had won the bid worth Rs 998.12 million to build the 23-kilometre long Daduwa canal of the Sikta irrigation project. However, even after the end of the contract period, Coastal-Pappu JV has been able to complete only seven per cent of the total works.

Earlier, the Department of Roads (DoR) had also sought clarification from Pappu Construction about the poor progress of two bridges along the Mid-Hill Highway in Sindhuli. The DoR had also asked the contractor to provide a plausible explanation as to why it should not be blacklisted. Pappu Construction in recent times has become infamous for inferior construction works and not completing projects within the contract deadline.

In one clear example of gross negligence, Pappu Construction has till date not completed the construction of a bridge over the Lal Bakaiya River. The issue came to light when five people lost their lives when the boat they were using to cross the river capsized on August 25. The Rautahat District Court had held Pappu Construction accountable for the deaths as it had failed to build the bridge through which the people could have crossed the river and issued a notice to Nepal Police to arrest Sumeet Rauniyar, chairman of the company. However, the police are yet to arrest him.

According to DoR, Pappu Construction has won 40 construction contracts worth nearly Rs 10 billion since 2014. Of the 40 projects, 35 are bridges while the rest are road projects. It has a track record of poor performance and poor quality construction, according to DoR.

Apparently, of the 35 bridges, construction deadline has been crossed for 24 bridges while there has been no progress on 11 bridges. Of all the contracts won by Pappu Construction, an average of only 10.04 per cent of construction works has been completed till date, as per DoR.

“There have been irregularities during the construction, monitoring and observation of the projects,” said Rajendra Raj Sharma, spokesperson for the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport. “It is time we revise the monitoring mechanism and make it more efficient and effective.”

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