Small contractors hold hunger strike in front of Ulhasnagar municipal headquarters

ULHASNAGAR: Despite the opposition of ruling party's three MLAs and opposition leaders, the contract for repairing the water pipeline by the local Ulhasnagar Municipal Corporation (UMC), which initially was fixed for Rs 10 crore later reached Rs 25 crore. Now, UMC has a plan to give the same work to one contractor for Rs 88 crore for the whole five years.


Over the same issue, small contractors that include 150 educated unemployed engineers and labor organizations in Ulhasnagar city have started a hunger strike for the last three days in front of the municipal headquarters due to the livelihood issues.

The small contractors working for many years with the water department said if UMC is successful into awarding contract to single contractor, then they will become unemployed.

Municipal Commissioner Aziz Shaikh on Thursday evening held a meeting over the issue with the protestors. The meeting failed as the protestors insisted on cancelling the illegal tender.

Now, the agitators who refused to withdraw protest said that they will go directly to Chief Minister Eknath Shinde to raise their grievances.

According to the decision of the Government of Maharashtra, it is mandatory to allocate 33% of the work to the labour institutes, 33% to the educated unemployed engineers and 34% to the qualified registered contractors.

Ulhasnagar city has more than 150 labourers cooperative societies and educated unemployed engineers. They run their livelihood by carrying out minor repair works by taking contract in the water supply sector.

The protesting contractors alleged that the municipal administration has announced a tender of Rs 88 crore for five years for the benefit of a contractor, who is already awarded several tender works in city.

Against that, more than 150 small contractors like the representatives of the city's laborers' cooperative organization and educated unemployed engineers have been sitting in front of the municipal headquarters for the last three days on a chain hunger strike.

Protestors alleged that onerous conditions have been placed in the tender issued by the water supply department to prevent small contractors from participating.

The protestors said, "In contract, the contractor who has materials such as vibratory roller, static roller, truck, ready mix concrete plant, mixer, hydraulic paver, mechanical bitumen sprayer, diesel generator will be able to participate in the tender process".


Abdul Rashid Patel, who is on hunger strike, raised the question that, "The materials condition put in contract normally remains with the road construction contractor, what is the relationship between it and water pipeline repair work".

Looking at protests for three days on Thursday evening, UMC Commissioner Shaikh called a meeting with the agitating small contractors.

During meeting, UMC commissioner Shaikh asked protestors about the objections and suggestions required in contract, but agitators said that this tender is itself illegal and it is encroaching on the livelihood of small contractors and they demanded UMC to cancel tender and issue tender as per earlier.

When asked over issue, Aziz Shaikh, UMC commissioner said, "Since there was complaint in quality of work and monitoring problem due to several small contractors for work, we as per yearly expenses of last three years between Rs 17 to Rs 18 crore decided to award single contract of Rs 88 crore for five years". Shaikh said, "Looking at protest, i called meeting of protestors asking for their objections and suggestions and very soon i will take decision over the same".