Agreement with Chinese company not finalized yet, Delhi Meerut Rapid Rail Project tunnel

- A Chinese company has also submitted a tender for a six and a half kilometer long tunnel

New Delhi Dated 4th January 2021 Monday

The National Capital Regional Transport Corporation (NCRTC) had earlier awarded a contract for a six-and-a-half-kilometer long tunnel between Ashoknagar and Sahibabad for the Delhi-Meerut Rapid Rail project to a Chinese company.

Amid an atmosphere of Chinese military maneuvering on the Ladakh border for the past few months and a clash between India and China, the question of how the tunnel work could be handed over to a Chinese company came up when there was talk of a boycott of Chinese goods.

However, government sources said the Chinese company has not yet been given the construction order. It is true that the Chinese company has tendered the lowest amount. The tenders of other companies are of higher amount, so naturally the Chinese company got the order. But the government has not yet made a final decision on the matter.

The Centre's town development department clarified that the order to build the tunnel of the rapid rail project transit system has not yet been given to the Chinese company. No final decision has been made yet. Tenders for the tunnel were opened last November. The technical bids opened in March last year. Five companies had sent their tenders for the construction of the tunnel. The five companies were Korea's SKEC and Tata, STEC (China), Larsen & Toubro, Afcons and Gulermekgir (Turkey).

All the tenders were opened on June 12 last year. The lowest tender was from a Chinese company. No final decision has been taken about this tender yet. Were considering together with various ministries.

This was the first such project of the semi-speed rapid rail project in the 82 km long area of ​​Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut.