The state government is finding it hard to get bidders to start development projects in Mohali.

A state-of-the-art air-conditioned multistoried bus terminal-cum-commercial complex is one of the total 13 development projects awaiting a bidder, three months after its previous bidder backed out.

The Punjab Infrastructure Development Board (PIDB), which was assigned the task of refurbishing Mohali, has failed to start Rs 4,843-crore projects.

The work on bus terminal-cum-commercial complex project, which was planned to meet the standards of an airport with most advanced facilities, was abandoned after Mumbai-based Akruti City Limited failed to submit a performance security of Rs 10 crore. Besides, the firm could not pay 50 per cent of the upfront consideration of the total bid of Rs 201 crore within a stipulated time.

In early August, the firm was allotted the work on the project following the acceptance of its highest bid for the construction, operation and maintenance of first-of-its-type tower-type building on 7.02 acres on the National Highway-21 in Sector 57.

As the bidder failed to pay the project development fee of Rs 1.25 crore and failed to sign the concession agreement, the PIDB Executive Committee recently decided to invite fresh bids for the project.

In the view its past experience, the PIDB has drastically slashed the minimum upfront consideration amount to Rs 52 crore. This means that during the re-bidding on or before January 7, the eligible entities have to make bids over and above Rs 52 crore. This means the present offer is one fourth of the last bid.

PIDB Managing Director Dr Sukhbir Singh Sandhu told Newsline that last time no minimum upfront consideration amount was fixed, following which such a high bid was received but failed to materialise resulting in loss of time.

Apart from the minimum upfront consideration amount to be offered, the successful bidder will be required to pay 5 per cent annual concession fee as provided in the terms and conditions, said a PIDB official.

Justifying the fixation of the minimum upfront consideration amount, the PIDB authorities reasoned that last time, besides the highest bid of Rs 201 crore (which failed to work), the other four bids received were of Rs 51 crore, Rs 12 crore, Rs 10 crore and Rs 7.5 crore respectively.

“In the view of the second highest bid of Rs 51 crore, this time the minimum upfront consideration amount has been slashed to Rs 52 crore,” said the officials.

While all other terms and conditions remain the same as were in the previous bidding document, this time the successful bidder has been offered another benefit.

According to the conditions, the private sector player who is awarded the project will have to transfer back the developed bus terminal to the Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMADA) after 20 years on “as is where is” basis. Following this, GMADA will have the right to re-plan the ground floor of terminal in a manner not similar to the existing project.

This time, the executing company will be given “first right of refusal”, which means that the re-planning work of the project, if any, after 20 years will be offered to some other company only if the executing company refuses to take up the project, having a concession period of 90 years.