Leader of the opposition N Chandrababu Naidu has demanded that the files relating to finalisation of bids for the Polavaram irrigation project be placed in the office of the Assembly speaker for scrutiny by legislators.
In a letter to the chief minister, Naidu said he had written to the government in the past making this demand since he had information to believe that the government was losing Rs 600 crore because of lack of transparency in the finalisation of tenders.
He said that in the finalisation of tenders last month there were allegations of foul-play.
The companies which filed bids in 2011 had filed bids afresh in 2012 after cancellation of the tenders but surprisingly the fresh bids quoted more instead of quoting less.
The companies which had quoted 12 per cent less than the project value last time quoted only 2 per cent less now.
He wanted to know why the government was hesitating to place the files relating to the tender process in the office of the speaker unless it had committed something wrong.
The government had the responsibility to dispel the doubts that were cropping up because of lack of transparency, he said.
If files were placed in the office of the speaker, members could study them and the government could begin the process of construction of the project by awarding the work to the deserving company, the TDP chief said.