Bhubaneswar: The All-Odisha Contractors’ Welfare Association (AOCWA) and the All Odisha Contractors’ Association (AOCA) Wednesday expressed serious concern over Works department Memo No. 173/W dated January 3, 2026, which abolishes the long-standing 14.99 per cent below-estimate bidding threshold in public works tenders.
Addressing a press conference here, AOCWA President Jagadish Patra said the threshold was originally introduced in 2013 to curb reckless under-bidding and was later strengthened through multiple circulars by introducing the Additional Performance Security (APS) mechanism.
He said the earlier framework helped maintain quality and financial discipline in project execution.
The Associations pointed out that the new memo has dismantled the APS system and adopted the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) guidelines of April 30, 2025, without considering the ground realities of State PWD works, many of which involve small-value projects.
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Applying MoRTH norms to such works could lead to abnormally low bids, poor quality, and stalled projects, they warned.
AOCA President Anil Mahalik flagged the lack of clarity on tender finalisation when SC/ ST bidders achieve price parity with L-1 bidders under the 10 per cent price preference, applicable to nearly 80 per cent of contractors.
He also raised concerns over excessive discretion granted to Technical Committees, which could result in arbitrariness.
