MCD Civic Centre maintenance outsourced at Rs 25 cr

To prevent its new headquarters — the Rs 650-crore Dr Shyama Prased Mukherjee Civic Centre — from losing sheen,the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) has decided to outsource its maintenance work to a private company at a cost of Rs 25 crore. The Facility Management Services will now look after housekeeping work,facade cleaning,operation and maintenance of electrical services,centralised helpdesk,elevators,firefighting system,plumbing,horticulture and waste management.

According to MCD officials,a large complex like the 28-storeyed building needs proper maintenance and the civic body does not have enough resources of its own for the purpose. “The civic centre has been built at the huge cost and should not be allowed to deteriorate. Hence,work is being outsourced at a cost of about Rs 25 crore,” said a senior MCD official.

He added that maintenance work would require dedicated coordination and would be done better if given to one company. “At the Town Hall (the old headquarters),even a minor glitch takes a long time to get fixed as it has to go through a lengthy procedure. By outsourcing the work,things will get fixed faster,” he said.

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A Request for Proposal for the project was floated last year and 11 agencies responded the first time. Representatives of the bidders,however,pointed out problems regarding payment and a second tender was subsequently floated.

This time,18 agencies responded and only BVG India Limited was shortlisted. It quoted Rs 26.48 crore for three years. After negotiations,the rate was brought down to Rs 25.35 crore.

The proposal will now be presented before the MCD Standing Committee on Tuesday for approval.